


Things Unspoken

by greendoodle



Series: Soulmate Power Swaps [1]
Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: (sorta?), Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Alternate Universe - Superheroes/Superpowers, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Getting Together, Hurt/Comfort, Insecurity, M/M, Power Swap, Slow Burn, Training Camp, only a few mature elements here and there
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-26
Updated: 2018-11-17
Packaged: 2019-05-29 04:22:32
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 41,153
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15065063
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/greendoodle/pseuds/greendoodle
Summary: When people meet their soulmate, their power gets switched for a good week. You and your soulmate swap superpowers and you get stuck with a stranger’s weird abilities for 168 hours. That’s enough time to ruin whatever life you’ve built up or even end up killed. Tsukishima knows. He’s done the math.He never wanted to meet his soulmate.or: Soulmate power swap AU with gay volleyboys





	1. Day 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hey, hey! I'm miraculously uploading something before AX this year so I'm feeling pretty swell!! :D
> 
> This was an idea I had for a long time because 1) I love soulmate AUs to death 2) I'm in BNHA hell (still in HQ hell tho no worries there)  
> Thus, this super fluffy self-indulgent idea was born and I'm already excited to write the installment for BkAk in the series (what can I say, I'm owl trash XD), and may even write one for BNHA as well.  
> ( **NOTE:** Many ppl are assuming this is a BNHA AU, it is NOT. It just has supernatural/superpower elements. There is no allusion to quirks or anything else in the BNHA world)
> 
> Anyway, hope you enjoy! ^^  
> (I promise I'll return to my other multichapters, I just needed a change of pace XD)

There’s a curious thing that happens when two people meet.

Tsukishima understands it well.

Well, at least, in theory.

If he had to explain it, he’d need to go back a decade or two when the entire mess started. The emergence of superpowers, the consequences that came with these new powers that humanity was given—it was all a big pain if he was being honest.

It was nothing like the superhero movies had depicted it, for one. Sure, there were powers that did exceed the imagination of human capabilities—super strength, super speed, super hearing—they were there, but they were limited and had their own individual restrictions. Tsukishima figured it was because it hadn’t been long since powers have emerged. He was sure that people in the future would bring about humanity’s demise with the evolution of overpowered abilities.

Because people were stupid like that, of course.

Maybe that’s why some higher power (as many theorize) had decided to introduce an extra element in addition to the abilities specific to each person—the existence of soulmates.

When people meet their soulmate, their power gets switched for a good week. You and your soulmate swap superpowers and you get stuck with a stranger’s weird abilities for 168 hours. That’s enough time to ruin whatever life you’ve built up or even end up killed. Tsukishima knows. He’s done the math.

Like in Mario Kart, the more powerful people get, the less leeway they’re given to exert that power. Tsukishima figured that the soulmate system was an extension of that belief.

Maybe that was why he was determined to never encounter his soulmate. He’s heard the stories—people whose powers didn’t match up even if their souls did. He’s heard of couples who have ended up killing each other in a fit of panic because they weren’t sure how to control the abilities they were granted for a small fraction of their life. It was never pretty.

Besides, Tsukishima liked his power a lot. It wasn’t anything fancy, but he was positive he didn’t want to give it away to someone he had never met even if it was only for a single week.

It was his power and he sure as hell wasn’t going to share it that easily.

Not even with his soulmate.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In sports, most superpowers were prohibited. There was a time in an official basketball game where an entire stadium went up in flames and after that, there have been strict rules against using one’s abilities for competitive activities.

But, that didn’t mean things didn’t slip under the radar.

The most dangerous players tended to be those whose powers could not be proven to the referee. Those players are kept under close watch however, and players with outright manipulation abilities aren’t allowed to play.

Fortunately for Tsukishima, his ability barely managed to pass the restrictions.

It was satisfying, to be completely honest. Watching the people who got off goading and playing with other people’s emotions on court reduced to a puddle of confusion and anger once they faced off against Tsukishima.

He hadn’t started volleyball for this, but heck could he revel in the absolute sense of superiority he got when an opposing player tried to rile him up, only to be rendered speechless by Tsukishima’s powers—literally.

Heck, even Hinata got a full helping of his abilities if he got too loud or annoying. Unfortunately, it was always done whenever they were out of earshot of the captain, but it was always satisfying whenever he had the chance to do so.

Noise cancellation.

Normally, Tsukishima preferred quiet. He enjoyed his solitude and didn’t go out of his way to socialize more than he absolutely had to. It made life easy and his superpower made his life even easier. He could put mute on the world around him whenever he wanted. Of course, he was restricted by the number of people he could do this to and it really only lasted within a three-meter radius from his body, but he wasn’t complaining about that.

It was really nice.

Not to mention, it was extremely useful as well. It wasn’t as pointless as Hinata’s few seconds of levitation or Tanaka’s sound amplification. Honestly, even Yamaguchi’s limited plant growing powers were better than _those_.

Tsukishima enjoyed the peace and quiet he got through his powers. So of course, whenever he saw other soulmates meet, he felt a pit of dread in his stomach.

He couldn’t explain it as anything else but pure terror when Hinata came back from the Nekoma reunion he had missed with the ability to change hair color with a single touch of his finger.

Or, the moment when Kiyoko entered the gymnasium one evening and introduced a new manager.

Yamaguchi had begun to glow ever so slightly. Yachi lost her ability to glow. She instead developed a green thumb she had never had before. The two were ecstatic.

But, Tsukishima… he didn’t understand. He _couldn’t_ understand.

How could they be so happy? It was terrifying not knowing what you’d get in exchange for the abilities you knew and loved. It was terrifying being away from something that defined so much of who you were. It was terrifying to have a part of you ripped away without your consent.

Yet, there Hinata was, laughing joyously as he jumped from teammate to teammate, messing with their natural hair colors and there Yamaguchi was, beaming like an actual star in the sky as he walked home with Tsukishima, eyes alight with adoration for his one and only soulmate.

Tsukishima hated it.

So maybe that was why he felt an acute panic when he arrived at the summer training camp and met eyes with Nekoma’s captain.

Back when Nekoma and Karasuno had first reconnected, Tsukishima had been unable to attend due to injury—in the string of games leading up to the reunion, he had silenced an opponent and they had gotten a bit violent in the aftermath. Needless to say, Daichi had warned him about provoking other players again.

It was duly noted through the stinging of his inflamed cheek.

Now, though, he wondered if it would have been better to have stayed injured. They had arrived a bit late to the Tokyo training camp due to the sparse intellect of the freak duo. After competing against the other teams long enough for the day to start to cool, it was finally time for their first game against Nekoma.

As Tsukishima stood on the court, his gaze met the Nekoma captain’s and sharp, amber eyes burned into his very being. One thought flashed through his mind.

_“Wow, Glasses-kun is kind of cute.”_

Only, that wasn’t his own thoughts.

Tsukishima blinked, wondering if he had misheard someone say something about their manager from the sidelines. Seeing no leering eyes, he furrowed his brow, utterly confused. He turned back as the whistle blew for them to play against Nekoma once more.

Or… not. Their captain was calling for a time out, a hand tentatively resting on the back of his… is that his _hair_? What the hell. Why did that bird’s nest of a hairstyle look somewhat attractive?

“Wait, sorry, time,” he laughed, a little breathlessly which was weird given they had just barely started practicing. “I… is there?” He looked up and out at Karasuno, a sheepish grin forming around shaking lips. He seemed beside himself with joy. “Anyone new on your team?”

Daichi blinked, looking across their team, but Sugawara immediately stepped in, realizing what had happened. “Yeah, we have a new manager, but she already…”

_“—has Yamaguchi.”_

Both teams turned to look at Yachi who shrunk a little under their heavy gazes. She frantically shook her hands in front of herself. “I—I’m already! Sorry, I’m seeing s-someone now!”

It wasn’t a particularly odd thing for soulmates to show up in groups of three or more, but given Yachi’s and Yamaguchi’s relationship goals, Tsukishima highly doubted it. It was then that it hit him.

_“Maybe it’s someone on another team?”_

_“Did we bring anyone else new this time?”_

_“Wait, couldn’t it be—?”_

A few eyes turned to stare at Tsukishima and he immediately felt his knees go weak. “What?” he muttered, the words lacking any real bite.

No one had actually said anything. No one’s lips had moved. They had all just collectively turned and…

“Tsukishima didn’t come to the Nekoma reunion last time,” Daichi stated and the words were like a nail in his coffin.

“I don’t think—” Tsukishima felt the words form around his mouth, but it took effort to expel them from his lips. He looked from everyone’s curious faces to the Nekoma captain’s steady gaze.

It was expectant.

He knew.

Tsukishima’s cheeks went red.

_“No way, Stingyshima can blush?!”_

_“Ah, I feel kind of bad for Nekoma’s captain…”_

_“Of course, the mean looking ones get together—”_

_“Tsukki looks like he’s going to throw up—"_

Everyone was speechless, and yet, Tsukishima heard everything. A dull panic rose up from inside him. It threatened to overtake him, overwhelm him; he felt as if he were suffocating.

“I need some air,” Tsukishima managed before he took off in the direction of the bathrooms.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

_“Hey, it’s that lanky Karasuno first year—”_

_“Whoa, really need to take a dump, huh—”_

_“Wow, she’s kind of cute!”_

_“I’m starving—!”_

_“I’m going to kill him, I swear—”_

It took a good minute before Tsukishima realized he couldn’t block out the thoughts that buzzed around his head. He wrenched open the bathroom entrance, rushed into an empty stall, and curled into himself, hands wrapped tightly around his ears.

This couldn’t be happening. It couldn’t be happening. Why was it happening?

He heard someone breathing heavily. It was another moment before he realized it was him.

Well, at least the breathing distracted him from the storm of thoughts that threatened to invade his consciousness. This ability was some kind of torture in and of itself. He wound himself tighter on the toilet seat, a muted hum ringing in his head.

He wanted it to stop.

Distantly, Tsukishima heard the restroom door swing open and he stiffened as a fresh thought entered his mind.

_“Must be overwhelming for him—”_

“Shut up,” Tsukishima grit out, eyes squeezing shut. He could recognize that drawling voice anywhere and that was a ridiculous notion because he’d _just_ met the man today. “I don’t need your pity.”

“Ah, crap—I didn’t mean to…”

A pair of legs stopped in front of his stall and he heard the upperclassman take a steadying breath. “You okay in there?”

“‘t’s fine,” he ground out.

 _“Obviously, not,”_ a voice echoed in his head.

“Shut—” he struggled to find the words. “I know.”

A moment of silence passed, save for the quiet murmuring in his brain.

“Look,” Kuroo began once more, and he at least had the decency to sound guilty about bestowing this curse onto Tsukishima’s life. “I know how overwhelming it can get, but this is going to last for a week so I don’t want you to bear with it like this the entire time, you know? I have… well, I have some tips if you want them?”

Tsukishima waited a moment for a pitying remark or a backhanded comment, but no other thoughts came. He wondered if he was supposed to take it as a genuine gesture of kindness, then.

He slowly released a breath he hadn’t even realized he was holding. “How do you make it stop?”

“It’s… you don’t, really, haha,” Kuroo admitted. “You just learn how to drown out the voices a little better.”

“How?” Tsukishima insisted.

“Come out here and let me show you. _And, let me see your pretty face._ ”

Tsukishima grimaced, his face warm. “Did you really just think that—”

Kuroo laughed, and when Tsukishima tentatively opened the stall door, he shrugged. “Guilty as charged.”

“Is this what I have to deal with for an entire week?”

“If by this, you mean me, then,” Kuroo scratched his chin, a small smile for Tsukishima. “Yes? Damn, this is weird.”

Tsukishima scoffed, his voice hoarse, and his eyes downcast. “No kidding.”

“So… mind telling me about your powers? And in return, I’ll tell you about mine—not that you don’t know what it is by now, but we can go someplace quiet and reclusive— _like a date_ —and I could give you some advice? Don’t worry,” Kuroo grinned, winking slightly. “I won’t jump you or anything like that. _At least not until we’ve had dinner, movie, maybe some dates or something, kinda wanna run my fingers through that head of soft hair—”_

“Not a date, and, stop--just, please stop thinking whatever you’re thinking,” Tsukishima huffed, but the heat in his cheeks remained. Was this guy for real? He let himself relax just a little because obviously, Kuroo wasn’t going to take advantage of him in his weakened state. “But, okay. Quiet is nice.”

“Okay, awesome! _Attaboy, Kuroo! Can’t wait to tell Bo!_ I know a good place away from people we can go to,” he extended a hand. “Ready to go?”

Tsukishima snorted, pointedly ignoring the outstretched fingers in favor of walking behind Kuroo. He was glad that the upperclassman seemed to get the hint. “Did you really just praise yourself in your head?”

Kuroo laughed, a faint pink spreading across his cheeks. “You can hear all that?”

“It’s your power,” Tsukishima responded, walking alongside Kuroo as the captain started to make his way across the school grounds. “Shouldn’t you know the extent of it?”

“In theory.”

Tsukishima grumbled something about the stupidity of it all, but he could hardly hear himself through the stream of thoughts from the people they passed. Kuroo seemed to acknowledge it though, humming pleasantly next to him as they made their way to a patch of grassy hill.

Soon, the voices began to fade and with this sensory overload reduction, Tsukishima felt keenly aware of how close he had been walking next to the ever popular, confident volleyball captain. It was kind of nerve-wracking, after all; he’d heard the stories about the esteemed Nekoma captain. The man was highly respected and beloved by all—he was the opposite of how Tsukishima was and he was definitely handling this entire situation with grace and efficiency—

_“Ah, man, I’m nervous.”_

Tsukishima paused, watching as Kuroo took a seat under the shade of a fairly large tree. He looked up at Tsukishima with a soft, inviting smile, patting the grass next to him.

He couldn’t be serious, what did the third-year have to get nervous about?

Silently, Tsukishima sat next to him, making sure to leave a gap so that he could leave at any moment if he decided he wanted nothing to do with Kuroo.

“Are you nervous?”

Tsukishima snorted, shrugging. “Aren’t you?”

“Yeah,” Kuroo admitted easily, leaning back onto his palms. He looked up at the sky. “If I had known I was meeting my soulmate today, I would’ve prepared my best pickup lines.”

Tsukishima had to stop from rolling his eyes. “Do you even need those with your soulmate?”

Kuroo grinned. “Does that mean I’ve already won you over, Glasses-kun?”

“That’s not my—”

“Ah, but, Freckles calls you Tsukki, huh?” Kuroo sat up and made a writing motion with his hand. “How do you spell your name?”

Tsukishima went silent, watching Kuroo’s hands as they made an attempt to write out what little he knew about Tsukishima into the air between them. Kuroo paused, fingers lowering.

_“Ah, shit, did I say something—”_

“Tsukishima Kei.”

Kuroo blinked, arms falling to his sides. “Kei,” he tested.

Tsukishima flushed, all systems on abort. He made as if to get up. This was too fast already. The universe was an asshole for pushing them together like this—why didn’t he have a say in when and who he would try for love?  “I—”

“Ah, sorry,” Kuroo spoke up, hands lifted in defense. “Is just ‘Tsukki’ fine for now? _Don’t mess it up, don’t mess up—”_

“Okay,” Tsukishima said, if anything to get rid of those strangely modest thoughts from a person he would have assumed to be a cocky asshole. “That’s fine, Kuroo-san.”

Kuroo’s shoulders slumped. “‘-san, huh?”

Tsukishima blinked. “Huh.”

“Nothing, I’m just glad that’s settled,” Kuroo smiled, humming. _“It’ll take time, it’ll take time.”_

Tsukishima didn’t know what Kuroo was referring to in his thoughts, but he thought it better to let it be. He made a noncommittal noise in agreement.

“So,” Kuroo continued, sitting up straight to lift a finger in the air. “As you already know, my powers—”

“Mind reading. I got that.”

“Well, not exactly,” Kuroo grinned and Tsukishima was distantly reminded of a Cheshire cat. The upperclassman twirled his lone finger in the air. “It doesn’t really work the way you would think mind reading would want to go. You generally don’t have control over whose mind you want to read. I’m sure you’ve realized this.”

“Yeah, it sucks.”

Kuroo made a sound that—was that a _laugh_? What the actual hell. It sounded like a chicken getting strangled.

_“Oh my god, he’s hilarious.”_

Tsukishima flushed, but refused to acknowledge the compliment as—it hadn’t actually _been_ a compliment, just a thought. And, he preferred to keep it that way.

“But, before that, I feel a little out of the loop here, Tsukki—” Kuroo breathed out, an easy smile forming on his lips. “Mind telling me a bit about your powers before I go into the details of mine? I know next to nothing about you.”

 _“As it should be,”_ Tsukishima mused, but thought better of voicing out loud. “Okay.”

It was then that Tsukishima realized he had never planned for this. He didn’t know how to explain how to use his powers, nor did he know how to go about controlling it. He hadn’t planned to meet his soulmate at a random volleyball game in the godforsaken city of Tokyo after all. He hadn’t planned to meet his soulmate at all.

“Uh,” Tsukishima stammered, finding himself lost for words. “I… usually if I’m annoyed or frustrated, I just… g-glare at someone and they can’t make any noise around me.”

Kuroo blinked. “Glare at someone?”

 _“It sounds really stupid when he puts it like that,”_ Tsukishima groaned internally, looking anywhere but at Kuroo’s face.

“I’m honestly not sure how to… explain it,” he found himself admitting, wrapping his arms around his legs. He noticed the way Kuroo’s gaze followed his movements, and he wasn’t sure if he wanted the captain to have any thoughts in particular about him. “It’s noise cancellation.”

“Noise cancellation, huh?” Kuroo considered, fitting a thumb under his chin. _“Fits him.”_

Tsukishima bristled. “What’s that supposed to mean? You don’t know me.”

Kuroo started. “No, no, oh my god, no, sorry, that’s not what I meant—just from what I’ve gathered so far, I just—”

“Whatever,” Tsukishima grumbled, glaring at the floor. What he wouldn’t give to be able to silence the upperclassman and leave him under that tree. Punish him with forced silence so that the captain couldn’t bother him ever again. Not that he could anymore since Kuroo was the one who had his powers now.

“Hey,” Kuroo said again, more calmly. “Sorry about that, you’re right. I know nothing about you, but that’s why I want to know, you know? It… probably sounds stupid— _lame_ —but, I personally really like the idea of soulmates. Could you give me a chance? _Please_?”

The plea went unsaid, but Tsukishima heard it loud and clear. He sighed, bringing his fingers together tightly. “Not like we have much of a choice, anyway.”

“Well, if you really wanted nothing to do with me, which, would suck to be honest, I would still understand,” Kuroo continued. “We could survive this week and then, never see each other again. Does that sound alright with you?”

Tsukishima looked at Kuroo, wondering if there was some sort of catch. As much as he hated the power now, it was useful in this specific scenario. He could definitely catch Kuroo in a lie, if he ever failed to be as genuine as he seemed to be. Given how much the captain seemed to love the idea of soulmates, there was no way he actually would be willing to let Tsukishima go after a single week, right?

“So, what do you say?”

No other thoughts came. Tsukishima closed his eyes and took a deep, steadying breath.

“Okay.”

_Day 1._


	2. Two Much to Handle

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> He paused, considering. "On the other hand, you live in this world that is completely silent to everything and everyone. That must be..."
> 
> Kuroo seemed to mull over his next words.
> 
> "...really nice."
> 
> Tsukishima stared at the grass at their feet. "It is."
> 
> "Thanks for sharing it with me."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey guys, I was absolutely blown away by all the love and support for this fic!! :D it really got me going for this chapter so thank you all for your comments and kudos! it rly motivated me to finish this chapter! ^^
> 
> anyway, here's chapter 2! not much happens, but important for the story's progression! enjoy! <3

By the time they returned, each team was already packing up the volleyball equipment on their side of the courts. Practice had thankfully continued as normal for not only Nekoma and Karasuno while Kuroo and Tsukishima were away, but for the rest of the other teams too.

Tsukishima was relieved. After all, he didn't want his teammates to be loitering around discussing his newly acquainted soulmate while he was off with said soulmate somewhere private.

Looking at the scoreboard, he was also glad he wasn't around for the penalties either. His team wasn't the worst in their prefecture, but this was Tokyo so, of course, they were bound to lose their games.

The two stood in the doorway of the gymnasium as the night started to deepen behind them. Along with the chaos of teenage boys trying to behave in an orderly fashion after practice, Tsukishima could hear the noise in the cafeteria pick up and the crickets start to chirp in the background. With night comes quiet, but maybe it was naïve to believe such a thing in the bustling city of Tokyo. That was the least of Tsukishima's problems though.

Kuroo gave Tsukishima a sympathetic glance and he sighed, under the weight of the fresh thoughts that entered his mind upon setting foot in the building. At least, he could try to treat it as white noise for now.

Or, try to.

Unfortunately, that was only part of his rising mound of inescapable problems. Dealing with white noise was fine but returning to his team was a bigger feat than he gave himself credit for.

_"Oh, it's Tsukishima."_

_"Ah, he looks more pissed than normal."_

_"Quick, everyone, like we talked about, act natural."_

Tsukishima stared blankly at the team as they tried to reassemble themselves in the most "natural" positions, as per captain's orders, he was assuming.

It might have worked if not for the fact that they all looked absolutely ridiculous. Asahi was looking anywhere but directly at him, Nishinoya was sneaking bold glances at him every few seconds, Yamaguchi was giving him a concerned eye, and the idiot duo were... he squinted at them. Being idiots.

Hinata was looking at him as if Tsukishima were about to lunge forward to stab the shorter boy at any moment and Kageyama looked apprehensive, the frown on his face different from his usual scowl. Other than Sugawara and Ennoshita, the rest of them looked overly nervous. It was clear what they were all thinking and he assumed it even before the thoughts filtered into his head.

_"What do we say to him?"_

Tsukishima sighed, picking up a stray volleyball and carrying it over to the cart. It was a pain, and his annoyance settled like a dull hum into his bones. This was way too much of a hassle and he definitely didn't want to dwell on it any further than he absolutely needed to.

It wasn't recent news that Tsukishima didn't like the idea of soulmates. He always had the most fowl look on his face whenever he saw people with their ‘destined ones,’ and he never bothered to hide that fact. He didn’t care if it made him out to be hopelessly pessimistic. It was all so stupid.

He still thought so.

He looked over to watch Kuroo walk back to his team with a sheepish grin on his face. The captain got a few wolf whistles and pats on the back, and he laughed them off heartily. Before Tsukishima could turn away, Kuroo turned slightly and their eyes met for a single moment. Tsukishima tore his gaze from him, feeling more self-conscious than usual.

_Ugh._

A hand gripped Tsukishima's shoulder and he turned to find Ennoshita smiling at him.

"We missed you! It was hard getting past their middle blocker first-year without our own wall."

"Ah, mm," Tsukishima stammered, and he found himself subconsciously waiting for another comment or thought but heard none. His cheeks reddened slightly. Was he already getting used to Kuroo's power? Well, it wasn't as if he could turn it off or anything so he figured it wasn't his fault for depending on it so early into the week. "I apologize."

"Don't," Ennoshita pat Tsukishima on the back more firmly, an understanding look in his eyes. "Must be rough."

"Tsukishima!"

Tsukishima winced at the proximity of the voice and he looked down to find Hinata observing him with an extremely focused expression. "What."

"Is your soulmate that Nekoma captain? What's your power now?"

Tsukishima scowled, grabbing a towel from the bench and wiping the back of his neck with it. "None of your business."

Hinata made some kind of grumbling noise in his direction. _"Stingy."_ Tsukishima felt his eye twitch.

"Unlike you," he found himself spitting. "I don't find satisfaction in letting all strangers within a three-meter radius know everything about my life."

Hinata blinked, then made a face. "What'd you say? I just wanted to kn—"

Thankfully, Yamaguchi stepped in at that moment, saving Tsukishima from having to eliminate the shorter middle blocker from existence. "Tsukki, are you okay?"

"I'm fine," he responded shortly, grabbing his water bottle off the floor and heading towards the sleeping areas. "I'm going to bed."

"Already?" Yamaguchi followed, trailing outside after him into the cool, night air. "What about dinner?"

"Not hungry."

Yamaguchi stopped in his tracks and the suddenness made Tsukishima pause to turn around. "What?"

Strangely enough, Tsukishima couldn't read into Yamaguchi's thoughts. It wasn't as if the other first-year wasn't thinking. No, quite the contrary, he was clearly wrapped up in his own mind, yet Tsukishima couldn't hear much except for a muffled haze. It was loud, uncertain, and crackling like radio-static.

It was annoying.

"Can you stop thinking what you're thinking?"

"Huh?" Yamaguchi flinched, eyes focusing on Tsukishima's frame in the dark.

"Just... stop that."

Yamaguchi seemed to deflate a little. _"What am I doing exactly?_ Okay, Tsukki."

Leaving Yamaguchi standing there, Tsukishima turned and left, his head buzzing with too many thoughts, too many words, too many feelings. This was the worst.

After all, most of them were his.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Kuroo had specifically stated that his powers weren't mind reading. They were some subcategory of mind reading, but not specifically anything extraordinary in the slightest. No, Kuroo's powers were mind skimming.

Tsukishima had snorted at that description. The two were essentially the same thing, weren't they? Yet, according to Kuroo, there were key distinctions between the powers.

For one, he couldn't choose whose mind he wanted to read. Kuroo had made that perfectly clear. With enough practice, Tsukishima could probably focus more on one mind than another, but that was with practice. Tsukishima only had a week with this cursed power so he was definitely not getting much practice in to fully utilize that distinction.

Two, Tsukishima could only read whatever was on the forefront of someone's mind. If a person was thinking complicated or layered thoughts, their voices would get muddled and messy, just as Yamaguchi's did. Now that Tsukishima had experienced it firsthand, it was not a pleasant experience he would like to have again.

"How are you even allowed to play with this ability?"

Kuroo chuckled. "I get asked that a lot. I had to fight for it, to be honest. This is one of the more"—he made airquotes with his hands—"op superpowers that are supposed to be banned in sports."

Tsukishima looked back at him blankly. "That's because it _is_ overpowered."

"Not necessarily," he responded immediately as if expecting the resistance. "Let's just say, it's really annoying when an opponent has only one thing on his mind. That can really screw you up."

Tsukishima rose an eyebrow.

"Like," Kuroo looked away, a flush rising in his cheeks. "Like if they're thinking about how much they want to 'get some' after a match."

Tsukishima found himself balking. "Gross."

"Right?" Kuroo cackled, shoulders relaxing once more. "It’s extremely distracting." He paused, considering. "On the other hand, you live in this world that is completely silent to everything and everyone. That must be..."

Kuroo seemed to mull over his next words.

"...really nice."

Tsukishima stared at the grass at their feet. "It is."

"Thanks for sharing it with me."

Tsukishima looked back up at Kuroo and met soft, hazel eyes. He felt his ears get hot. "Huh?"

"Thanks for sharing your," Kuroo laughed awkwardly, scratching his chin. "Your silence? With me? Even if you didn't want to."

Sputtering, Tsukishima stood up from their spot underneath the tree. "That's... that's not something you... why would you thank me for that kind of—?"

Kuroo followed suit, standing up to meet Tsukishima. From his expression, the first-year could tell that Kuroo had a lot on his mind, but he wasn't sure exactly what. Tsukishima sighed, kicking at the ground. "Yeah, okay."

 _"So cute."_ Kuroo smiled back at him, the softness of his eyes giving his thoughts away before his actual thoughts did.

Tsukishima felt his stomach do a flip and he cursed his internal organs for being so weak. Soulmates be damned, he was going to hold out this week and never see this embodiment of a hairdresser's nightmare ever again.

Yet, even as he thought about the prospect of seeing Kuroo again even after seven days have passed, it didn't particularly bother him.

And, _that_ bothered him.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

He heard him before he even opened the door.

Even without his new superpowers, he could hear the captain fidgeting behind the paper door and Tsukishima had to keep himself from sighing.

_"Delicately, delicately..."_

"Do you need something, Kuroo-san?"

A pause, an exhale. The door slid open.

"I forgot you could probably hear me," Kuroo laughed, and Tsukishima couldn't understand why he sounded sheepish about it. "Are you going to eat dinner?"

Tsukishima sank back against the wall in his corner of the room, watching Kuroo stand awkwardly in the doorway. "Did Yamaguchi send you?"

"No, your libero."

Tsukishima sighed, tucking his headphones away. "I'm not hungry."

"You have to eat something though, Tsukki. _Especially because the night will be hard._ "

Wait, what? Tsukishima sat up. "What's happening at night?"

" _Shit._ Uh," Kuroo laughed, a little forced. "I wanted to tell you over dinner."

"Tell me _what_ over dinner?"

Kuroo bit his lip, weighing his next words carefully. Tsukishima waited as patiently as he could. He admitted that he half expected the captain to spill the truth in a stream of thoughts in the meantime.

"Over dinner," the captain concluded decisively after a moment, offering an outstretched hand to Tsukishima.

Tsukishima eyed it for a brief moment before resigning himself to his fate. He reached forward, grabbed the Kuroo's hand in his—wow, his grip was really strong—and hoisted himself up to his feet. They left for the dining hall together, the third-year leading the way.

It wasn't until halfway into their meal, which, wasn't as loud as Tsukishima was originally concerned about that Kuroo spoke up in the half-empty cafeteria.

"You might have been wondering about my hair and why it's kind of a mess all the time," Kuroo began, shoveling another spoonful of rice into his mouth.

Tsukishima eyed it. So, it wasn’t like that on purpose. “Not particularly.”

"Well, regardless, I don't exactly sleep well,” Kuroo nervously admitted. “It… it’s too loud usually.”

Tsukishima paused, putting the pieces together. "Are you saying--"

"The powers don't really turn off at night."

Great. Just fantastic.

Tsukishima felt another headache looming and he scowled at nothing in particular. "So, I'll experience everyone's dreams? Their subconscious?"

"You know how they say dreams are the link between the subconscious and the conscious? During the day, my power skims through everyone's surface thoughts, but at night, the subconscious comes forward and my power ends up skimming through that."

Tsukishima was at a loss for words to say. He couldn't deny that he was annoyed because yeah, this sucked royally. He was reminded of the stories of soulmates whose souls were made for one another, but their superpowers failed to match. And hell, he definitely did not want to know what everyone else was thinking at any given moment, nor did he want to experience their subconscious thoughts either.

If he didn't maim anyone by the end of this training camp, he would have surprised even himself.

How anyone lived through constant noise and disorder, Tsukishima had no clue. Honestly, he was just so overwhelmed by the backlash of this shitty ability that nearly all the cons outweighed the pros.

More than anything though, for whatever reason, he was really angry. Strangely enough, not at Kuroo, but _for_ Kuroo.

Had the man never had a decent night's sleep his entire life? Granted, superpowers only emerged towards the end of grade school years, but regardless, he could only imagine what it was like, unable to sleep soundly because of the voices swarming in your own head. It would be fine if the voices were your own, but these were outside thoughts and opinions of people he could care less about.

For a second, a slight moment, Tsukishima was glad Kuroo would be able to have a night of soundless rest. Even if he had to go through this hell himself, he had to admit, Kuroo probably didn't deserve whatever _this_ was.

“That’s fine,” he ground out, sticking his spoon into his mouth so he didn’t have to say much of anything else if he didn’t want to. “How do you deal with it?”

Kuroo seemed to visibly slump with relief at how well Tsukishima was taking it. He hummed, taking another swig of his water. “Well, similarly to you, I have a set distance before thoughts really start to get into my head. I can technically hear everything in a given room once I enter it, but the further away the person is, the quieter their voices are. So, I try to sleep as far away from people as possible and use pillows propped up around my head.”

“Pillows?”

Smirking, Kuroo pointed at his mess of black hair. “You don’t think this comes naturally, do you?”

Tsukishima stared at his head, opting not to say anything else. Kuroo winced in embarrassment and Tsukishima fought back a smirk, averting his eyes to finish the last of his meal instead.

“Tsukki, that’s harsh.”

Tsukishima snorted, laying his chopsticks down on his tray. “I’m sorry that your hair defies all laws of physics and reality.”

“Anyways,” Kuroo asserted loudly as the two of them fought back grins. Tsukishima was belatedly glad that the captain took his sarcasm well. “The pillows do help. Or anything else you can prop up? If you can make a mini-room with whatever materials you have around you, that’ll block out most thoughts.”

“Okay,” Tsukishima looked down at his empty tray and smiled, feeling a bit more relieved about the whole situation. “Thank you, Kuroo-san.”

_“Oh my god, his smile, oh my god, oh my god, oh my—”_

Tsukishima raised his head quickly, instantly meeting eyes with Kuroo to find the captain absolutely smitten, that look on his face so tender and gentle, completely infatuated and at a loss for words save for the internal meltdown he was apparently having. Tsukishima felt heat rise to his cheeks and he felt too hot, too uncomfortable.

“Kuroo-san, _please_ ,” Tsukishima spluttered, getting up with his tray. “I’m going to bed.”

Kuroo was being absurd. How could he already feel so much for someone he had only just met? How could he _look_ at Tsukishima like that? As if he wanted to hang out with him, even if he knew close to nothing about him. He could blame it on soulmates all he wanted, but this was something else, a pull that was stronger than fate, a genuine desire to want to know, get to know, to understand and then to lov—

“Ah,” Kuroo seemed to compose himself a bit, turning around in his seat to watch Tsukishima walk towards the kitchens and drop off his dishes. “Okay, Tsukki. Sweet dreams! Let’s…”

He paused, and Tsukishima’s feet stopped in the doorway despite his decision to flee as quickly as possible. It was as if he were hanging on every word that the captain had to say regardless of whether or not it was particularly important.

This was ridiculous. _He_ was being ridiculous.

“Let’s—” Kuroo started again, a small smile tugging at his lips in a way that was oh, so handsome, and really, honestly unfair. Tsukishima blamed his sweaty palms on the adrenaline. “Let’s hang out more tomorrow, yeah?”

“W-we kind of need to in order to practice, so—” Tsukishima grumbled in Kuroo’s direction. “Please don’t say such ridiculous things.”

Kuroo blinked, then laughed softly. “Yeah, okay, that’s fair. See you then, Tsukki!”

It was only when Tsukishima reached the bedrooms that he realized he had enjoyed himself with Kuroo. Quite a lot.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

When Tsukishima had told his teammates that he would probably end up stabbing them if they got too close to him in his sleep, they hadn’t questioned it.

Hinata had speculated it was some form of snoring power to which Kageyama had responded by saying that sounded stupid.

Well, it _was_ stupid so he wasn’t wrong.

For once.

Needless to say, he was grateful that Karasuno respected his space. Even in that tiny room, a bit of distance meant a lot especially given they’d all be in his head every night for the next seven days. And, every morning too.

Not only that, but they respected his space on the entire soulmates matter as well. Well, other than the occasional inquisitive look and curious thought he got, but it was still better than he would have expected out of the majority of their team of heathens. Though, he supposed he had Sugawara-san and Ennoshita-san to thank for that.

He assumed that most of them had figured it out by now regardless of their burning questions. Kuroo was known pretty well as an experienced middle blocker after all—not to mention the captain of a skilled Tokyo team. His powers would be more commonplace knowledge than the powers of some no-name first-year from a fallen school.

But, of course, some people had only volleyball for brains so—Tsukishima looked down at Hinata who was eyeing him with pupils the size of dinner plates. He sighed, turning over in his bed and pulling the covers over his head. “Night.”

“Hey, wait, Tsukish—”

“Ah, Hinata,” he heard Yamaguchi interject. “The—the bath is open now.”

Hinata yelped, and after a brief struggle to grab his things and head to the door, he and Kageyama were sprinting towards the washrooms in another one of their stupidly competitive absurdities.

The rest of the team settled down after that and Tsukishima heard Yamaguchi settle down close to him.

“Sorry, Tsukki.”

Tsukishima made a noncommittal noise and Yamaguchi laughed.

“Just, I found out from some senpais—that’s one annoying power you have, huh?”

“Very.”

“Think you can sleep?”

“Odds are unlikely.”

_“Just like the odds of finding your soulmate here in Tokyo?”_

“I don’t…” Tsukishima began, clutching his pillow in his hands. It was hot under the sheets. “He’s not my soulmate.”

Yamaguchi went silent, that radio-static returning once more. Tsukishima sighed.

“I mean, I don’t really—It’s really annoying. He’s supposedly my soulmate, but who decided that? Honestly, we could end up killing each other and it wouldn’t be hard. I don’t want the universe to decide who’s best for me, I just—”

_I hate that I can’t decide for myself._

Admitting it made the whole thing more real. Tsukishima huffed, closing his eyes as the white noise in his head continued to strum. Kuroo was right about that though—it did help to make his own ‘mini-room’ even if that room was just the confines of his blanket. The only person’s thoughts he could hear were Yamaguchi’s and that was because he was the closest.

“I need more space,” Tsukishima mumbled and he heard Yamaguchi shuffle a bit away from his corner.

“Sorry, Tsukki,” he responded, though this time, it wasn’t an apology loaded with self-loathing or pity. Tsukishima knew his friend well enough to discern that at the very least.

“Shut up, Yamaguchi,” Tsukishima retorted, burying deeper into his sheets. As he felt his eyes close, his thoughts were a quiet murmur of voices, soft and muffled. It reminded him of the tenderness in Kuroo’s eyes.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It wasn’t long before Tsukishima woke up.

The room was pitch black and the only sounds were the deep breathing of his teammates as they slept peacefully around him.

Well, excluding the loud, vivid thoughts that were entering his mind.

In his sleep, he must’ve kicked off his sheets because the thoughts were clear and rampant in the recesses of his brain. Some people weren’t dreaming and so they saved Tsukishima the torment of entering their thoughts, but others—specifically Nishinoya, was having dreams of grandeur and Tsukishima could not deal with that kind of energy right now.

Not that he had any choice in the matter as he watched Nishinoya run off to save princess Kiyoko, Tanaka in tow. Kuroo had stated that dreams were never exceptionally visual, but Tsukishima could still make out the opaque, slightly transparent image of the two second-years running off to do stupid things together.

His head throbbed and he groaned. He was disrupted in the dead of the night for this nonsense?

Tsukishima grabbed the covers once more and wound them more tightly around his head. Sure, he could hardly breathe, but he’d rather suffocate than watch a movie he couldn’t even turn off because that movie was unfortunately inside his own brain.

Maybe if it was an adequate movie, he wouldn’t be griping as much, but this… this was a shitty movie at best.

He soon realized it was futile, as even though he could hardly visualize the daring adventures of their local hick town idiots, he could still hear their incessant yelling.

It wasn’t long before others began to stir around him and he felt the first rays of the sun beat down onto his bedsheets.

Great. Just great.

Nishinoya’s dream came to an abrupt end and the libero got up quickly, as if signaled by the dawn of a new morning. He leapt up as the rest of Karasuno fidgeted in their sleep, threw back the curtains and called everyone to wake up.

Tsukishima wanted to die.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The rest of the morning and most of the day was a blur. Tsukishima could hardly register much of anything—what, with the consistent thumping of his heart in his head. He still heard the voices around him, but they were more muted than normal.

He carried through the motions of volleyball robotically. Serve, receive, block, set. Surprisingly, he did better than usual whenever he registered a “ _going for a feint_ ” or “ _let’s do a_ _back attack_ ” from the other team. He moved accordingly to where he was supposed to go or where he was called. He could tell his teammates were impressed.

But, their recognition meant squat. More than anything, he wanted sleep. He wanted rest. He wanted quiet.

Damn soulmates.

He ate a bite of lunch in the back of the school buildings somewhere by himself, and then finished the rest of practice with the others that evening, reaching for the sweet release of death in sleep later that night.

Kuroo found him towards the end of the day when they had all finished their drills and games. “You doing okay, Tsukki?”

“No,” he responded and the word dropped like lead between them, heavy and sleep-deprived. A myriad of thoughts pulsed in his head, demanding attention. He wanted to knock his head into the wall. God, did he want to pass out on some empty alleyway somewhere. He didn’t even care if he had to kill a man to get to his destination as long as he got there right now.

Kuroo seemed to sense his frustration. “Hey, uh, we’re doing extra practice in gym three before dinner—do you want to join?”

Tsukishima gave him a look that must have looked half-murderous because Kuroo revised his offer with raised hands. “Not to do any, but I think it’ll be quieter than anyplace else. _Plus, I want to spend time with you._ ”

“I’ll think about it,” Tsukishima said as neutral as he could manage before he headed towards the baths to wash for the day.

It was better there as Tsukishima sunk into one of the tubs, watching the warm water flood out onto the tiled floor. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, slow and steady.

_Quiet._

How long was it since he last had a quiet moment like this? Logically, he knew it had only been a day or so, but damn did it feel like an absolute eternity. The fact that Kuroo had to deal with this noise for his entire life was appalling and terrifying. The man was definitely made of some stronger material for being able to endure this kind of torture day by day.

But, Tsukishima supposed Kuroo kind of had to—after all, he lived with this ability day in and day out. It was unthinkable for Tsukishima that any person can live through this kind of blaring sound, but, he supposed the man was well-adjusted given he was captain of a renowned volleyball team.

Tsukishima sunk in deeper, his nose meeting the waters. He watched the steam rise up to the ceiling and relished in the serenity of the washroom. This was heaven. There was nothing but his own thoughts to bother him.

And, that’s just what his thoughts did. He let them wander, he let them think, he let them do what they couldn’t do throughout the day—just, be.

He wondered if he could get some sleep before the team started filing into the sleeping rooms. Kuroo had invited him to extra practice, but between extra practice and sleep, it was obvious where he wanted to go. He was really feeling the exhaustion of a sleepless night settle in, especially with the warm, steamy air around him.

Making his decision in an instant, Tsukishima got up, washed off quickly and headed towards Karasuno’s room. A lot of their volleyball idiots would still be practicing for another hour at the very _least_ , and he was desperate for even half that time to rest.

His hopes were quickly dashed though as he entered the room and saw a couple of the second-years playing cards on the floor with a few Nekoma reserves.

“Oh, Tsukishima did you want to sleep?” Narita spoke up, but it was clear from his grip on his deck that he wasn’t keen on leaving.

Tsukishima wanted to scream yes, fuck, yeah, I want to sleep, but already, the thoughts of the people present in the room permeated his thoughts and turned his brain to mush. He made a strained expression between a scowl and a grimace and left without another word.

“Maybe he’s looking for the bathroom,” he heard through the door as he walked away towards the third gymnasium, feeling very annoyed.

He didn’t know how long it took him to get to his destination, but all he knew was that when he arrived, Kuroo blinked back at him, midway from picking up a volleyball from the floor.

“Tsukki, you came!”

And, just like that, it was as if the majority of Tsukishima’s irritability had washed away. He bowed his head, then realizing he probably didn’t need to do such a thing, looked back up at Kuroo, a faint pink on his cheeks. “It—it’s too loud.”

Kuroo gave him a sympathetic look, but before he could say anything, a broad-shouldered teen barreled into the captain, wrapping an arm around his shoulders.

“Hey, hey, who’s this?”

“Oh, Bo, this is my…” Kuroo trailed off, uncertain. The radio-static buzzed in Tsukishima’s ears.

“Tsukishima Kei,” Tsukishima offered, if anything to get the swamp of thoughts out of his head. He began to bow but stopped momentarily to observe the mess of black and white hair on top of the guy’s head. Did all of Kuroo’s acquaintances have hair that looked to be styled in the midst of a tornado?

“Oh, I know him! Karasuno’s—” the teen swirled his fingers in the air, deep in thought. Then, as if he didn’t feel like thinking about it for much longer, he concluded with: “Karasuno’s!”

Kuroo snickered, removing himself from his friend’s grip. “This is Bokuto, he’s from Fukurodani. One of the top five aces in the country.”

Bokuto swelled at the statement, his hands falling to rest on his hips.

“Too bad you didn’t make top three.”

Bokuto squawked and Tsukishima was vaguely reminded of Hinata. The ace pouted, shooting Kuroo a sour look before folding his arms out in front of him. “You can’t just do that, Kuroo. I’m almost there!”

Kuroo shrugged, a shit-eating grin on his face. He turned back to Tsukishima with a kinder smile. At least the first-year now knew where those ‘bad boy’ vibes he got from Kuroo came from. “You okay? You can sit on the sidelines and close your eyes or something.”

Tsukishima nodded, going over to do just that. He felt keenly aware of Bokuto’s eyes following him all the way to his seat.

“Ah!” the ace exclaimed in realization, placing his fist in his palm. “He’s your soulmate!”

Tsukishima flushed slightly and Kuroo, in turn, rubbed the back of his neck shyly. Bokuto seemed beside himself with excitement. It was as if he were the one with the newly acquired soulmate and not them.

“What’s your power now? How is it? How’s it feel? Does Glasses-kun like your power? Hey, Glasses-kun, wait a minute—”

“Oh my god, Bo, just—” Kuroo irritably started, but stopped when he saw Bokuto pause for a split second, his mouth flying with questions, but no words exiting. Kuroo blinked, then, upon realizing what had happened, smirked. “Oh, I really like that.”

Bokuto made a frustrated expression of indignation, moving his hands to convey what he wanted to say, but getting nowhere. In fact, the hand motions probably made it worse as he just looked as if he were wading through air. Despite the exhaustion, Tsukishima laughed slightly, hiding his mouth behind his hands. Kuroo glanced back at him with a toothy grin before turning back to Bokuto and placing his hands on his hips.

“What’s wrong, Bo? Cat got your tongue?”

Bokuto lowered his arms and looked up to the ceiling, in a half-attempt at a groan. Kuroo laughed, and Bokuto, after taking a moment to pout, gestured once more towards Tsukishima.

“He’s had a long day.”

With that, Bokuto seemed to understand. He nodded, then pointed at his Adam’s apple, the court, a couple volleyballs on the floor.

“As long as we let Tsukki rest.”

The ace agreed vigorously with a few vertical shakes of his head. He gave a thumbs-up, then mimicked a player setting a ball and another person spiking. Kuroo huffed knowingly at his friend’s antics, a fondness that only came with months of closeness settling in his eyes.

Just like that, the spell seemed to break and Bokuto was able to speak once more. He pat his throat tentatively before staring at Tsukishima once more. “I still think Glasses-kun should block for us, though!”

“You know what my power’s like, give him a pass for today. Later this week though—” Kuroo looked back at Tsukishima, a provoking smirk on his lips. “He’ll learn how to block like a _real_ middle blocker.”

Bokuto oohed (or, hoo’d? the ace did resemble something of an owl) softly in the background and Tsukishima felt a vein pop in his head. He glared back, wrapping his arms around his knees. Even if he was fatigued, he still felt a competitive fire burn in the recesses of his stomach. If his body cooperated with him, he would have totally taken Kuroo up on his challenge, but for now, he felt like dead weight and he would honestly rather be stabbed than practice volleyball. So, instead, he opted to lean back against the gymnasium walls and roll his eyes at the Nekoma captain.

Kuroo gave him a sly smile before turning back towards Bokuto. “Ready to go?”

Bokuto hollered in affirmation, racing towards the net and preparing himself for a spike. Kuroo trailed after him after giving Tsukishima a thumbs-up.

Tsukishima watched as Bokuto tossed the ball, Kuroo set it, and the ace leaped forward to slam it down onto the other side of the court. The two set up a steady rhythm of setting and spiking interchangeably back and forth, and to Tsukishima’s surprise, there was fairly calm silence through it all excluding the occasional comment, squeak of shoes, and balls slamming to the floor. He closed his eyes for a brief moment, soaking in the quiet.

“Tsukki?”

He felt someone gently shake his shoulder and his eyes fluttered open to meet with Kuroo’s. Tsukishima flushed, mouth agape, horrified to be caught sleeping. He covered his lips and averted his eyes, laughing awkwardly. “S-sorry, I didn’t mean to—”

“No, no!” Kuroo waved a hand in front of his face, and there were those tender eyes again. Tsukishima forced himself to look away. “ _You were so cute._ You looked so peaceful, I didn’t want to wake you, but we should really get some food in your system.”

Tsukishima sat up, feeling a dull ache in his shoulder. The lights were dimmed and Bokuto was in the background, chucking the last stray volleyballs into the basket before dusting off his hands and heading towards them. Tsukishima quickly stood up, and Kuroo backed away a bit, a small smile on his lips.

“How long was I—?”

“About 40 minutes or so?”

Tsukishima looked down at his shoes. His shoelaces looked particularly interesting today. “I see.”

“Hey, hey, Glasses-kun!” Bokuto called, an ear-splitting show of teeth on his face. “You should block for us next time! It’ll be more fun!”

“Maybe when Akaashi comes back, and when Tsukki gets some rest,” Kuroo suggested, walking over to turn off the lights and jingling keys in his hands. “For now, we should get food.”

“Food!” Bokuto yelled, his smile growing bigger than Tsukishima thought possible. He ran towards the door, calling about fetching ‘Keiji’ before disappearing from sight. Tsukishima felt his shoulders loosen a bit.

“He’s… excitable.”

Kuroo cackled, closing the gym door and locking it behind them. “Yeah, definitely, but have you noticed something about him?”

Tsukishima looked at Kuroo blankly before a thought filtered into his mind. _“No mind skimming.”_

“No mind skimming?” Tsukishima echoed and Kuroo laughed, nodding. “But, how does—”

“Bokuto is a straightforward person so he doesn’t tend to overthink things as much,” Kuroo elaborated, leading the way to the cafeteria. Tsukishima reluctantly followed. “I mean, he does have his moments, but overall it’s nice being around him. Akaashi on the other hand, god, I swear I’ve had at least two hundred separate death threats from him. Most of which were unvoiced which is even scarier, in my opinion.”

“You kept mentioning him, but I don’t know who he is.”

“Oh, Akaashi is Bokuto’s soulmate! They get along great. It’s kind of a wonder given how different they are, but hey, if Bo’s happy, then I’m happy for him.”

Kuroo hummed and Tsukishima felt another wave of calm. The captain was thinking of him when he had invited Tsukishima out for extra practice. He wanted to help make things easier, help him through a time of struggle, even when they were supposedly strangers.

It made Tsukishima feel… loved.

He scoffed and Kuroo turned to look at him. Tsukishima looked away, jamming his hands into his pockets. This was ridiculous. Of course, Kuroo wanted to help him. They were soulmates after all. If they never had this label on their relationship, Kuroo would have never reached out to him nor made him feel so…

It was a sad thought, but before Tsukishima could start to feel self-pity, Bokuto ran up from behind them just as they reached the cafeteria.

“Keiji’s already ate and he’s tired so he’ll be sleeping, but he’ll probably come to practice sometime this week. Then, you can block for me Glasses-kun!”

Tsukishima didn’t know if he wanted to block one of the nation’s top aces, but he figured he wouldn’t voice that out loud. Instead, he located an empty table and after grabbing his dinner, headed there without further comment.

Thankfully, the room was practically empty like last time. Tsukishima had to wonder if Kuroo was doing it on purpose—having dinner at odd times so that Tsukishima felt more comfortable. Regardless, he was grateful for it.

The three of them sat down and Kuroo and Bokuto began talking about a recent movie that came out. Tsukishima dug into his food, his appetite returning after that quick power nap. There was a white noise hum in his head, but it wasn’t bad.

He finished first and after watching the two upperclassman bicker for a moment longer over mouthfuls of food, decided he would try to sleep in an actual bed this time. Tsukishima stood, causing Kuroo to look up in alarm.

“You’re going?”

Tsukishima blinked, gripping his tray in his hands. “Yes, I’ve finished.”

“Wait, Tsukki, let me—” Kuroo shoveled the rest of his dinner into his mouth before standing up with his tray balanced on one hand. “Bye, Bo!”

Bokuto chirped a farewell of his own, focusing entirely on his meal in front of him, scarfing it up ravenously. Tsukishima winced at the sight.

“Here,” Kuroo offered, grabbing Tsukishima’s tray and his own. “I’ll take these back. Wait for me, a sec.”

Tsukishima nodded dumbly, watching as Kuroo scrambled to return the trays back to the kitchen and come back to him, as if Tsukishima would leave without a word. Tsukishima walked towards the door, hovering outside the entrance when Kuroo popped out, a grin fitting his lips once he spotted him.

“Tsukki,” Kuroo gave that small smile of his again and Tsukishima felt butterflies flit around in his stomach. He blamed his meal for indigestion. “ _Wow, I hope I’m not being too pushy_ —do you mind if I ask you something?”

“You already are.”

Kuroo snorted. “I suppose I am. Well, I was just wondering—only if you want to—do you want to take tomorrow off with me?”

Tsukishima blinked. “Off?”

“Like, a break off practice. You know how by law, soulmates are allowed to have a week off school and work when they meet each other? Let’s take tomorrow off! I can talk with the coaches about it and everything.”

“Is it really smart for the captain to take a break while his team is still working?”

“Maybe not for a whole week,” Kuroo snickered. “But, they’re in good hands. They can handle themselves for a day or two. Plus, this kind of thing won’t ever happen again and I want to take advantage of it while I can.”

Tsukishima mulled his options over. When he first discovered his soulmate was at the training camp, he had wanted to fast forward the week so he would be done with it as soon as possible and never see the Nekoma captain again, excluding at future matches. He had wanted to solely survive the seven long days, practicing with his teammates hard enough to forget the fact he even _had_ a soulmate.

Yet, looking directly into Kuroo’s shining hazel eyes backlit by the glowing moon, made all his doubts vanish like leaves on a windy day. He looked down at his feet, contemplating his choices, all the problems that could crop up, how he would feel if Kuroo actually wasn’t someone he enjoyed spending time with and it was only an illusion painted over by the soulmate façade.

“And, if it’s not too much to ask,” Kuroo sent a sheepish smile his way and god, Tsukishima wanted so badly to wipe the nervousness off his face. “We could go on a little date?”

“Only,” Tsukishima found himself speaking before he could stop himself. “I-if it’s not anywhere loud.”

Kuroo grinned, a smile that was large and wide, and made Tsukishima’s heart ache a bit. It had a different effect than Kuroo’s smaller smiles and Tsukishima wondered if anyone else felt this way looking at the captain. “Wouldn’t have it any other way.”

Tsukishima figured that at this point, he technically already had two days under his belt. They had gone by in a blur, but he had conquered them regardless. Whatever this date threw at him, he could handle it. And, if he were being completely honest, he would probably do it again if it made Kuroo this happy.

Probably.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I legit had a headache during that whole time Tsukki was sleep deprived, I kid you not. I may have channeled some of my pain through him xD
> 
> I'm hoping to update this series weekly, but no promises xD as always, feedback is super appreciated and really helps me keep writing! you can find me here!! ^^  
> [Twitter](https://twitter.com/tetsookie)  
> [Tumblr](http://greendoodle.tumblr.com/)


	3. Three's a Crowd (so we'll go someplace quiet)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “You must be some kind of athletic idiot if your idea of a first date is a rigorous hike up a mountain,” Tsukishima opted to say instead, in a tone that was only mildly mocking. Kuroo blinked, then laughed his hyena laugh and everything felt lighter again.
> 
> “I suppose, but hey—if you want to avoid people, you need to go where only idiots would go.”
> 
> “That’s assuming I would want a date in the middle of a secluded mountain.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So what I said about weekly updates... I lied xD but, I hope this long update makes up for it though!
> 
> I had a really hectic and stressful July, and it only really started to settle down now. Thanks for everyone who sent me birthday wishes during that time though! You know who you are ^^ Anyway, without further ado, enjoy!! <3

If Tsukishima was expecting a quiet night, he would have been fooling himself.

As hard as he tried to block out the noise, there was still a quiet murmur regardless of whatever method he attempted to use. In the end, he decided to give up and stare blankly at the inside of his comforter.

Well, at least he got a bit of sleep earlier.

He listened to the soft (and not so soft) snoring from his teammates across the room and stifled a sigh. Strangely enough, he didn’t feel as worn out as before, but he knew that was probably due to the adrenaline more than anything else.

Damn was it hot under the sheets.

Tentatively, Tsukishima pulled them off over his head and waited for a train wreck of dreams to invade the recesses of his mind, but the voices only got slightly louder. He blinked up at the ceiling, letting the air of the room settle around his face.

The rest of the team had heeded his warning from the previous night and had positioned their futons significantly away from his. He could make out Yamaguchi closest to him, then Sugawara-san and Daichi-san further away, and the rest of Karasuno splayed out beyond them.

Tsukishima took a deep breath and let the thoughts hum like white noise for a long moment before his eyelids started to close, heavy with exhaustion.

There was definitely a few more hours of rest he got before the first semi-transparent vision entered his mind. It wasn’t as high-energy of a dream as the previous night’s with Nishinoya’s delusions of grandeur, but rather, something more homey, soft-spoken, and… romantic?

Tsukishima watched as a hand—his own? No, someone else’s—reach over to caress a taller man’s cheek. It lingered there for a minute, feeling every surface of the other’s skin, and Tsukishima couldn’t help but feel oddly intrusive for being indirectly part of such a tender moment. Unlike Nishinoya’s dream where he seemed to be observing from afar, this time, it was as if he were the one completing the action—seeing through the eyes of the dreamer.

The dreamer giggled and stepped back, watching as the taller man laughed heartily before turning around and heading towards an automatic door. From where Tsukishima was, he could hardly make out who the man was especially as the dreamer’s eyes were fixed solely on—

Oh. Oh god.

His eyes traced along the grooves of the man’s butt, down to his legs and there, they stayed. Each stretch and pull of the man’s legs were carefully catalogued into the dreamer’s—and Tsukishima’s—long-term memory, and oh, god, this was too much, he didn’t even know who he was lusting after, shit, make it stop, where was the off button on this stupid thing—

As if on cue, the dreamer called out in a low voice that dripped suggestion. “Daichi, you’re leaving already?”

The taller man turned and Tsukishima could clearly see his captain at the door, laughing nervously as he adjusted his tie. “I have work, Suga.”

The dreamer—Sugawara—got up from where he was sitting and made his way to the doorway, wrapping his arms around Daichi’s shoulders. “Stay.”

“B-but—”

Eyes flit back down to Daichi’s legs and oh, god, Tsukishima was looking at his captain’s legs, how had he never noticed how thick they looked, good lord, they were really muscular and firm, and actually really nice, defined, he wanted to grab them, and—

“Koushi.”

Sugawara looked back up at Daichi, a playful smile tugging on his lips. The captain’s eyes softened and he reached forward to cup Sugawara’s cheek into his hands. Then, Sugawara closed his eyes, leaned forward, and—

Tsukishima scrambled awake, limbs tangled and caught in the folds of his blanket. In the midst of his panic, his fists made contact with the nearest object next to him which, in this instance, was Hinata’s face.

“Ow!!” the redhead yelped, and the rest of Karasuno got up in a flurry of confusion and irritation, eyes blinking blearily in their direction.

“Tsukishima, what the hell!” Hinata cried, hands over his nose and eyes half-shut in the glare of the morning sun that was peeking in through the curtains. “What was that for?!”

Tsukishima sat crisscrossed, an arm on his knee, a hand on his face, trying to cool the embarrassment that was threatening to flood his entire body. He blinked rapidly, ensuring that his vision was his own and he wasn’t trying to screw his team captain outside of the subconscious either.

“Tsukishima, you alright?”

He stiffened instinctively, peering through the gaps in his fingers at Daichi who was knelt down next to him, ready to offer a helping hand. Yet, all Tsukishima could think about were those legs, the muscles on those legs, the groove of his butt, leaning into the captain’s touch and—Tsukishima felt his face flush even harder.

“Tsukishima, that really hurt, you—”

“Now, now,” Ennoshita comforted, wrapping his arms around Hinata’s. “I’m sure it was an accident, calm down, Hinata.”

Tsukishima turned to the short one with a face that left no room for arguments. “It was your own damn fault for rolling over to this side of the room. Wasn’t your mat on the far side of the room? What kind of idiot...”

“What was that?!”

A hand fell on his shoulder and Tsukishima fell silent, overly self-conscious of himself even though he probably had no reason to be. “Tsukishima.”

“I’m fine,” he murmured, looking anywhere but at Daichi which was stupid given that this wasn’t any of his captain’s fault. “Just a bad dream.”

The hand seemed to hesitate for a moment before backing off. Tsukishima felt himself relax a little. “Is that so?”

Tsukishima nodded and hoped that would be the end of it. Daichi seemed to study him as the rest of the team was slowly but surely rolling up their futons. Even if it was earlier than usual, most team members had reasoned that it would be better to pack up to practice than attempt to sleep again.

“Alright,” Daichi concluded, giving him a smile that Tsukishima tried to ignore. The captain got up and signaled for the rest of the team to prepare for another day of training.

Through the packing, Tsukishima pointedly avoided the captain and vice-captain.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In the chaos of the morning, Tsukishima almost forgot about his date with Kuroo.

Almost.

It wasn’t until half past seven that he saw the Nekoma captain jog up to him with an earsplitting smile on his face. It gave Tsukishima an uncomfortable warmth in his chest. He noted the fairly large backpack Kuroo was carrying and black bomber jacket draped around his shoulders.

“Hey, Tsukki! Just talked with my coach and I have the go-ahead! What did yours say?”

Tsukishima paused, realizing that he had meant to ask Ukai for the day off, but forgot to in the mayhem of post-dream panic. “I, I didn’t ask yet, but I can—”

“No need, I can ask for you!” Kuroo hastily input as if he were afraid Tsukishima would back out on their date. “That’s him over there, right? _With the bleached hair?_ ”

Turning, Tsukishima saw that Kuroo was indeed looking at the right person. Coach Ukai and a few of the other players from Karasuno as well as those from other schools were loitering outside of the cafeteria as they waited for the doors to open.

“Yes, that’s him.”

“Great, wait here! I’ll go talk to him. Ya’know, captain privileges and all,” Kuroo winked, then headed towards the group. Tsukishima highly doubted that ‘captain privileges’ mattered in this kind of situation, but he didn’t push the issue.

As Kuroo ran up to Ukai with a barely contained enthusiasm, Tsukishima felt his gaze trail down to Kuroo’s legs, and what the hell, were all captains carved out of stone? The captain’s legs were covered by a pair of ripped jeans, but Tsukishima could see every pull of muscle as the man made his way to the front of the cafeteria. The clothing accentuated his legs perfectly and they looked firm, strong, thick, cats landed on their feet, right? He could probably crush a watermelon with those thighs—

“Oya?”

Tsukishima jumped, turning to meet the new voice and coming face to face with a head of dark, curly hair. Before he could register the man’s face though, a familiar grinning face made its way to his side.

“Oya, oya? What’re you looking at Glasses-kun?”

“I—” Tsukishima stammered, all excuses dying on his tongue as his latest thought was how nice it would feel to run a hand along Kuroo’s leg, just once. He turned away, glaring at nothing in particular. “It’s Tsukishima.”

Bokuto hummed and the curly-haired man seemed to raise an eyebrow for a split second, but Tsukishima couldn’t tell if it had happened at all as his expression was the most neutral he’d ever seen.

“So, Tsukishima-kun, this is Akaashi!” Bokuto chirped, pride welling in his voice. Akaashi in turn gave a half-nod, looking at Tsukishima with piercing, all-knowing eyes. There was a loud static in the first-year’s ears, and with that, he concluded that Akaashi was a thinker.

“It’s nice to meet you,” Tsukishima bowed, feeling embarrassed that the first impression he made to Bokuto’s soulmate was of him staring very intently at Kuroo’s defined legs. Not that he would admit that to anyone and he would much rather take that to his grave than let Kuroo find out for himself.

The image of those legs lingered in his head for a moment more before he shook it out completely.

Damn Sugawara’s dream for doing this to him. He hadn’t even noticed Kuroo’s legs before because he’d always been more focused on his smile and soft eyes—

Tsukishima flushed harder, turning away and adjusting his glasses as an excuse to hide his face.

Damn soulmates.

Damn them.

Damn.

“You doing alright there, Tsukishima?” Akaashi asked, and Tsukishima had a feeling the man knew that he was definitely _not_ doing alright in the slightest.

“Yes, I’m fine,” Tsukishima responded quickly as he watched Kuroo bow a few times to Coach Ukai before making his way back to them.

“Hey, so I got permission! Whenever you’re ready, we can go!”

“Kuroo-san, your enthusiasm is blinding,” Akaashi deadpanned next to Tsukishima. The phrasing of the statement made it seem like a backhanded comment.

“Ah, Akaashi, Bokuto. I’ll be gone the whole day so I’m leaving the camp to you,” Kuroo grinned, shouldering his pack so that it sat more snugly around his shoulders. It looked as if nothing would faze him. “C’mon, Tsukki!”

The captain seemed to contemplate reaching for Tsukishima’s hand for a split second before laying a hand on his back instead and pushing him towards the Karasuno sleeping rooms to prepare. Tsukishima could hardly register what was happening until the stream of voices began to fade.

“K-Kuroo-san, I don’t even know what we’re doing. Where are we going?”

Kuroo stopped the two of them in front of the paper door. “Just wear something casual and maybe some sunblock? I’ll prepare everything else!”

“It’s obvious you’ve already prepared plenty,” Tsukishima stared at the backpack and Kuroo chuckled in response.

“You got me there. But, I want you to enjoy today, Tsukki. I’ll be waiting out in the front!”

With that, the captain left Tsukishima on his own in the empty room. The first-year sighed, making his way to his luggage and pulling out a white dress shirt and black jeans. He hadn’t packed much in the way of clothing other than the necessary outfits for practice, but he figured that Kuroo wouldn’t complain much regardless.

And, if he did, well, they weren’t seeing each other again after a week, so.

The thought alone sat uncomfortably in his stomach and Tsukishima rolled his eyes at himself, quickly changing in the room and rummaging through his duffle for his small side bag. He knew he only felt this way about Kuroo because of the whole soulmate thing. Once the two separated and there was distance between them from Miyagi to Tokyo, it would be easier to accept the conditions he set for himself.

He hoped.

After gathering his things, Tsukishima made his way towards the school entrance, making sure to slide the door shut firmly behind him. As he made his way there, he avoided the other volleyball players so that he wouldn’t get any unnecessary comments or questions—either spoken or unspoken.

It was stupidly lame how quickly he spotted Kuroo before he actually realized it was him.

The captain was waiting by the gate, sitting on the brick wall, getting up, and then sitting down again. He was running his fingers through his hair and looking more nervous than Tsukishima had ever seen him. Honestly, he only recognized him because the restless movements that Kuroo made could be spotted from a mile away.

Tsukishima stopped a bit before reaching Kuroo, feeling his own anxiety threaten to overwhelm him. Here was his soulmate, excited and thrilled to spend a free day with him, but Tsukishima was silently counting the hours before he would be free from this curse.

It was a bit jarring, the difference in attitudes they took to this situation. And yet, despite Kuroo’s excitement, he was still afraid of how Tsukishima would enjoy the day—as if the blonde’s opinion mattered. The pacing, the unsureness in his actions, his words, the words Kuroo didn’t speak—it was clear.

It made Tsukishima feel… guilty.

Which, honestly, was stupid. He wasn’t some blind optimist like their local idiot, Hinata, or even remotely close to a positive thinker like Yamaguchi. He was realistic, a bit of a pessimist—cynical at the worst times and grounded in the best. It was what defined him and what drove him as a person. He couldn’t be flowery or cutesy or anything the captain wanted. Maybe Kuroo would have been better off with a romantic—someone who could match him in the ideal love life he probably deserved.

In that moment, Kuroo looked up from his pacing and spotted him, a smile alighting his face. The tenseness in his shoulders seemed to melt and he waved a hand, that infuriatingly handsome smirk tugging on his lips.

“Tsukki, you came!”

And, maybe, just maybe, Tsukishima could give him one chance.

Taking the last few steps to bridge the gap between them, Tsukishima averted his gaze, looking out into the quaint neighborhood beyond the school gates. “Kuroo-san.”

“ _Ah, I’m so relieved_ ,” a voice echoed through his head and Tsukishima wondered whether Kuroo was relieved that he had actually come after all or that Tsukishima hadn’t fought back against this date at all to begin with. “You ready to go?”

“Yeah,” Tsukishima admitted, looking down at his things before meeting Kuroo’s eyes. “So, where are we going?”

“That’s a secret,” Kuroo winked, and pointed towards a nearby bus station. “We’re going to travel by public transport, if that okay? If you have headphones,” he pointed at his ears. “They’ll probably help.”

Tsukishima blinked before realizing that Kuroo meant using the headphones to deal with his new troublesome superpower. He mumbled his acknowledgement, already digging the devices out of his bag as they made their way towards the station.

It wasn’t long before the bus arrived and they both got on without any issue. The bus wasn’t terribly crowded and Tsukishima chose a seat near the middle—closest to the rear exit. Kuroo paused for a moment before sidling down in the cushions next to him. Even though it would have been weirder to choose seats further away from each other, Tsukishima kind of hoped they did because sitting next to Kuroo like this was slightly suffocating.

It wasn’t suffocating in the way Tsukishima usually felt when people got too close to him, but rather in a way that made him feel self-conscious about everything he did. Was he sitting right? Are his shoulders too hunched? Are his hands too weird? Is he breathing okay?

Gods. His own thoughts were a pain. Honestly, he kind of wished he found Kuroo annoying like all the other strangers who invaded his life without permission.

But, Kuroo wasn’t a stranger—well, not anymore, as much as Tsukishima wanted to push the issue.

If Kuroo was aware of his uneasiness, he definitely didn’t do much to show it. Instead, the captain simply hummed a silly tune softly, giving Tsukishima a small smile before turning to watch the other passengers in the bus, of which there weren’t many.

There was a grandmother near the front, a couple of grade-schoolers close to them fiddling with a game console, and a lone businessman in the back holding a hefty suitcase. Their thoughts had already flooded Tsukishima’s mind the moment he entered the vehicle, but it was only now he felt their presences more keenly.

Seeing as Kuroo wasn’t preparing to get off anytime soon, Tsukishima settled back in his seat, putting on his headphones and turning to look out the window. Even though his music was playing, he could still faintly hear the murmurs of the others around him. The grandmother was quietly going over a grocery list in her head, the businessman was preparing for a meeting with his boss, and the kids were only as loud as their voices as they fought over control of their handheld. That, combined with Kuroo’s humming made up all the noise in his head.

All in all, it wasn’t too bad. In fact, he probably could admit that Kuroo humming made him feel a bit more comfortable. He watched the scenery go by in his own little version of quiet, his eyes hooding over ever so slightly.

After the tenth or so song in Tsukishima’s playlist, Kuroo tapped his shoulder. “Tsukki, we’re getting off here.”

Tsukishima nodded, silencing his phone and getting up with Kuroo as the bus slowed down to a stop. Once the doors opened, the two got off and were greeted with a small trail leading into a forest next to the bus stop.

Tsukishima rose an eyebrow, reading the rusty lettering on the sign that announced some kind of mountain he had never even heard of. It was quiet, save for the chirping of a bird or the rustling of the trees in the wind. The bus left as quickly as it had come, leaving a puff of smoke in its tracks. It was a remote, secluded location that might have frightened a lesser man. He turned to Kuroo, a smirk on his lips.

“Kuroo-san, are you planning to murder me?”

Kuroo spluttered, taken aback by the accusation. He took a moment to compose himself before sighing dramatically. He peeked at Tsukishima out of the corner of his eye. “Damn, Tsukki, you’re too sharp. How did you ever find out?”

“It was suspicious that you were so excited about this soulmate thing.”

“Alas,” he chuckled, shoulders untensing. “My nefarious plans have been uncovered, but no matter!” Kuroo gave a sinister smile. “All forms of escape have gone now—you have no way to run!”

Tsukishima hummed, looking closely at the directory next to the bus station. “It says I’d only need to wait fifteen minutes for the next bus.”

“Who says I can’t kill someone in fifteen minutes?”

“Trust me, I can put up a fight.”

The two stared each other down before Kuroo released the floodgates and started laughing hysterically. Tsukishima followed closely after, his nervousness disappearing with each breath he took.

“Kuroo-san, really, why are we in the middle of nowhere?” he managed finally, wiping a tear out of his eye and trying to ignore the flush in his cheeks. It had been ages since he could find someone to banter with like this and it was a pleasant feeling that he hadn’t realized he missed.

“I thought it’d be nice to have a little hike, just the two of us! No bustling city or loud people around, just me, you, and the screaming cicadas of a summer’s day,” Kuroo smiled, and Tsukishima’s stomach flipped for the umpteenth time that day.

“The screaming cicadas don’t qualify as noise to you?” Tsukishima jabbed.

“They disappear the further up you go,” Kuroo responded. “Besides, they’re not as bad as people, right?”

Tsukishima couldn’t help but admit that Kuroo was definitely right about that. He shrugged, shouldering his bag again, looking out into the trees before them. Kuroo hesitated for a moment before reaching out a hand.

“Wh-what?”

“We’re… kind of—as you put it—in the middle of nowhere so wouldn’t it be okay if we just held hands… just this once? _Please, oh please_.”

Tsukishima hoped his face didn’t look as hot as it felt. He tried to shrug, but it came off as a brief spasm. He saw Kuroo back away a bit, thoughts of screwing up clear in his head.

Tsukishima cursed himself. They were just going to hold hands, what did it matter? He shouldn’t think so hard on this, it was only a simple thing, after all. Other people did it, so why couldn’t he?

_Other people enjoyed finding their soulmates._

“ _Ah, too far,_ ” Kuroo gave him a smile that was smaller than any other he’d seen, but it disappeared as quickly as it came. He stretched loudly before heading off towards the trail, Tsukishima reluctantly following behind.

_Well, there goes that nice atmosphere we built up._

Kuroo lead the way, talking about something—the mountains here are something about childhood, something about Kenma, something about coming here for something with Bokuto—Tsukishima barely heard it. Instead, he stared at Kuroo’s lightly swinging hands, wondering, wondering, if maybe, he could salvage whatever it is they had in that brief moment before he royally screwed it up with his weird no-soulmate policy.

“See, at this point, there aren’t any cicadas to yell at you,” Kuroo was rambling, stepping on a slopped rock to the side of the curving path. The captain wiped his brow, breathing a little harder than normal. “I’d say we’re like thirty-five percent of the way there at this point? We’ve made great progress!”

Slowly, Tsukishima reached over and grabbed Kuroo’s hand (the one that wasn’t covered in sweat) in his. Kuroo seemed to recoil for a moment, words stopping, his eyes widening ever so slightly. A slight rosiness rose up his neck that Tsukishima figured wasn’t from the exercise.

_Cute._

Tsukishima flushed at his own thought and looked down at the forest floor. This was stupid. “Wh-what were you saying about the cicadas, Kuroo-san?”

“Th-th-th-cithecadas, they, uh, what was I—” Kuroo stammered, and Tsukishima snorted, rolling his eyes. He heard the captain swallow thickly and golden eyes surveyed his face. “ _I want to kiss him_.”

Okay, now, he was definitely red. “Kuroo-san—” he started, with an edge of warning in his voice, though he wasn’t sure why. He never said they _couldn’t_ kiss—he just never figured they would get that far within a week.

But, they were soulmates.

They were, so.

Kuroo was waiting, holding his breath for Tsukishima. He probably wasn’t sure if his thoughts were heard or if Tsukishima was going to say something else completely unrelated. Either way, Tsukishima had to say _something_ to break the silence—the radio static in Kuroo’s head wasn’t going anywhere.

“You must be some kind of athletic idiot if your idea of a first date is a rigorous hike up a mountain,” Tsukishima opted to say instead, in a tone that was only mildly mocking. Kuroo blinked, then laughed his hyena laugh and everything felt lighter again.

“I suppose, but hey—if you want to avoid people, you need to go where only idiots would go.”

“That’s assuming I would want a date in the middle of a secluded mountain.”

“Well, you play volleyball, don’t you, Tsukki?”

“Yes, but usually when I take a break from volleyball, I’m not exercising _more_ like a maniac.”

“But because you play, it’s a safe bet you like exercise too, right?”

Tsukishima considered it. “Not really. Sweating is the worst.”

Kuroo chuckled. “Lots of things are the worst with you, huh?”

Tsukishima felt a prickle of anger, but it quickly abated into guilt and shame. It wasn’t his fault most things sucked. There was only a handle of things that really failed to annoy him and these were passions he cherished dearly. Before he could say anything else though, Kuroo smiled and said in a lower tone:

“I’m glad this date wasn’t one of them.”

“Huh?”

“I—I mean, given you came out with me all this way must mean you don’t think this totally sucks, right? And that means a lot to me so, so thank you, Tsukki.”

“Date’s not over yet,” Tsukishima mumbled, looking down at their still-linked hands. It was too warm, but it was summer so of course it would be hot.

It sucked.

Kuroo laughed, leading him up the trail. “Then, let’s go! You have to see the river—oh, and there’s the top with a gorgeous view—granted, it’s not the _best_ , but since this was such an impromptu trip—next time I’ll definitely—”

With ‘next time’ ringing in his ears, Tsukishima followed Kuroo up the mountain path, hand in hand, and honestly, it was incredibly inefficient and very sweaty, but Tsukshima didn’t dislike it. They talked about all sorts of things on their way to their destination—mostly Kuroo rambling about some kind of species of plant or animal, and about little things that shouldn’t have mattered, but did. It was nice getting to splash water into Kuroo’s face at the river and see his stupid smile and his irritating laugh the whole way because, it was, quite frankly, not that annoying.

By the time they reached the summit several hours later, the two of them were both hot, sweaty, and a little bit breathless as they took in the scene above the city. Wordlessly, they unlinked their hands.

“Nice, isn’t it?” Kuroo bragged as he pulled a blanket out of his bag and lay it on the grass.

“Yeah,” Tsukishima found himself admitting, but he was mostly looking at Kuroo. He thanked the stars the captain didn’t notice.

They both sat down and Kuroo hummed, digging through his luggage to pull out several onigiri that looked—

Tsukishima choked out a laugh because honestly speaking, even if he was being kind, the lunches looked more than a little ruined. The rice was smeared and scattered, the seaweed was droopy and soggy, the shape was something of an oblong hexagon rather than the traditional triangular-shaped meal.

Kuroo laughed sheepishly. “Don’t mind the look, they’re edible.”

“Are you sure, Kuroo-san? I feel as if the hike back there was a ploy to let my guard down. How do I know you haven’t poisoned these?”

“Shit, Tsukki, you keep finding me out. You’re ruining my reputation as the Tokyo serial killer.”

“ _The_ Tokyo serial killer?”

“The one and only.”

They laughed together once more and settled down to eat Kuroo’s crappy rice balls. The onigiris were a little too salty and a lot of a mess, but Tsukishima enjoyed them all the same, especially after their hike. Kuroo passed him some water and they sat, watching the small specks of people in the city bustle about.

“It’s quiet,” Tsukishima voiced out loud and Kuroo smiled.

“Yeah, that’s why I like it here.”

“Did you come up here a lot with Kenma-san?”

“Nah,” Kuroo chuckled, leaning back to watch the clouds. Tsukishima slowly followed his lead. “Kenma has a personal vendetta against exercising more than necessary.”

Tsukishima stared up at the sky. A particularly fluffy cloud drifted by lazily. “That sounds like a solid life goal.”

“You’d be horrible at following it.”

Tsukishima huffed, turning his head to glare at the side of Kuroo’s face. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“I mean, you came all the way out here with me, didn’t you?”

“Against my will.”

“You didn’t even put up a fight.”

“I was dragged here.”

Kuroo snorted, a smirk tugging on his lips. “You say that, but I’ve seen the way you play… you can be really aggressive when you want to be, Tsukki.”

Tsukishima considered that, then relaxed. He hummed his acknowledgement, feeling the gentle breeze sway the shrubbery around them. “I don’t know, Kenma-san can be pretty scary too.”

“Yeah, but he only really gets super aggressive against that shorty of yours, what’s his name—”

“You don’t need it.”

Kuroo laughed. “Yeah, well, that shorty brings out the best—no, worst? In our brain so, you only need to ever worry about him if we’re on opposite sides of the court.”

“So, like every game.”

“Exactly.”

Tsukishima rolled his eyes. “I thought you were supposed to be my soulmate.”

“Hey, nobody said anything about soulmates not being able to play a friendly, competitive match together,” Kuroo shifted over so he could look at Tsukishima. The blonde stared back, feeling quite self-conscious. “And, you—” He paused, but his thoughts spoke for him. “ _Acknowledged that I’m your soulmate_.”

“I—I just—” Tsukishima spluttered, turning away. “I said _supposed to be_ , Kuroo-san.”

“Right,” he heard from behind him. “ _Supposed to_.”

It hurt a little to hear.

They passed a moment in silence before Kuroo sighed heavily, moving to a different position on their shared blanket. Thankfully, the blanket was big enough for a large group so Tsukishima had plenty of room to himself. He peered back to see Kuroo bunching up a corner of the cloth to use as a pillow.

“What are you doing?”

“We’re both pretty sleep deprived so I thought this would be a good place to get some rest,” Kuroo explained, moving his bag to a more secure position in between the two of them.

“You didn’t get enough sleep either?”

“I was a little too excited for today,” Kuroo admitted, chuckling.

“Is that the end of the date?” Tsukishima asked no sooner than he regretted even thinking of the question. He definitely didn’t want to sound desperate or upset—he had enjoyed himself after all, but it was only a bit past noon and he wasn’t sure if he was prepared for the day to end just yet.

“I have a little something later, but other than that, I just want you to get the rest you need today.”

“That’s why you had us hike nearly four hours.”

Kuroo laughed softly. “Well, did it work?”

As a matter of fact, it did. Tsukishima did feel a lot more tired than usual, and with the quaint mountaintop view, he did feel like he could sleep for millennia.

So, he did just that.

Thinking rationally, Tsukishima should have probably argued against sleeping at all as two lone high school boys knocked out on a blanket in the middle of nowhere was probably the best invitation for robbers or _actual_ murderers to actually rob or murder them.

But, today was not rational-Tsukishima day as he was only a mortal running on miniscule sleep and was stressed beyond his comprehension due to an overactive superpower. With a quiet sigh and a quick glance at Kuroo, he allowed his eyes flutter shut and let the waves of exhaustion take over him.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

He didn’t know how long he slept, but when he opened his eyes again, the sun was significantly lower in the sky. Getting up blearily, Tsukishima yawned.

“Ah, Tsukki, I was just about to wake you.”

Tsukishima turned to see Kuroo packing the things he took out of his bag and getting ready to roll up the blanket they used. Tsukishima got up hastily.

“Oh, no, that’s fine, you don’t have to right away— _so cute_ ,” Kuroo laughed, smiling at Tsukishima in ways that did not make his just-woke-up-what-time-is-it panic any better. The offhanded thought didn’t do much to help either. “Ah, but if you can grab that end and straighten it—”

Tsukishima quickly worked to follow Kuroo’s instructions and together, they cleaned up their little picnic and were ready to head back down the mountain.

“We can take the direct path down instead of the winding one,” Kuroo said.

“Did you get any sleep?”

“Yeah, I did!” At Tsukishima’s look, Kuroo continued. “I don’t dream very often—I’m a pretty light sleeper.”

“Because of your superpower.”

Kuroo chuckled. “Definitely doesn’t help. How about you?”

Tsukishima walked behind Kuroo, their feet crunching on the leaves and branches of the underbrush as they swiftly made their way back. “Really well.”

“That’s great,” Kuroo grinned, and Tsukishima had irrational thoughts of grabbing onto the captain’s hand once more. He had to convince himself that the very act would be morbidly stupid given walking back down didn’t require as much footing stability as going up did.

But, he really wanted to.

Kuroo hadn’t done much. He only brought Tsukishima out to a quiet place so that he could get some rest and enjoy himself along the way. It was a small thing, this hike, but for Tsukishima, it meant a lot to know his soulmate was looking after him.

No, not his soulmate. His mentor. A captain from another team.

He had to keep reminding himself.

Every so often, Kuroo would look back to check on Tsukishima. Although their trip up was full of banter and conversation, this trip down was nearly dead silent, filled with patient looks and gentle gestures.

It seemed twice as long as their climb up.

“What time is it?” Tsukishima asked, mostly to break the peace. He could have easily just checked his phone, but his eyes seemed to be glued on Kuroo’s figure.

“Mm, about 4pm? Getting to the bottom of the mountain will take us another hour or so.”

“Where are we going?”

Kuroo grinned. “I was hoping we could get some dinner, hit a small café or something.” Slowly, he stopped, giving Tsukishima a concerned look. “Are you okay walking through a bit of a crowded area?”

Tsukishima felt like he could conquer the world as long as he had Kuroo at his side, but the captain didn’t need to know that. He shrugged, looking at their shoes. “As long as they have cake.”

“For dinner or at the café?” Kuroo teased, though the joy alight in his eyes was clear.

“The café, Kuroo-san,” Tsukishima huffed in mock annoyance.

“Right,” Kuroo laughed, holding out a hand once more. Tsukishima looked at it more calmly this time as Kuroo gave a small smirk. “Just until the bus ride.”

He didn’t need any second invitation. Tsukishima silently took Kuroo’s hand in his and the two of them made their way awkwardly down the mountain together.

Yet, even at the station they didn’t separate from each other, and it was only after they had taken their seats on the bus did Tsukishima pry his fingers apart from Kuroo’s in order to put on his headphones again.

He loathed how he missed the touch so soon.

Kuroo on the other hand looked as if to be on cloud nine. He had given Tsukishima the window seat in seeing the blonde’s preference for them, but he was still watching the view go by the opposite window, his hand coming up to cover his face.

It didn’t hide that goofy smile.

This man was ridiculous.

Tsukishima turned to stare out his own window, trying to hide his own smile and failing miserably. He definitely had trouble admitting he had fun but seeing Kuroo look besides himself after a simple hike—that made Tsukishima feel as if he were on top of the world.

After a while and thankfully after the two of them finally got a hold of their respective emotions, Kuroo turned to Tsukishima and signaled their stop. They got off at the station, and Tsukishima felt the now all too familiar rush of thoughts invade the recesses of his mind. Although there were a few people on the bus, it was different from being in a busy intersection, surrounded by hundreds of strangers.

God, if only Tsukishima could shut them all up.

As if reading Tsukishima’s mind, Kuroo laced their fingers together once more. It was a little more hesitant of a hold than a firm one and upon looking into Kuroo’s eyes, Tsukishima could see that he was silently asking permission.

_Yeah, it’s fine._

Kuroo beamed and Tsukishima thought he could probably endure whatever torture this was if he could only see Kuroo that happy again.

Tsukishima couldn’t help but feel exasperated at himself. When had he decided he wanted to make Kuroo happy? Even if he hadn’t explicitly stated it upfront, he had been trying small things to make the captain happy all day, from agreeing to this date to listening to him talk in the forest, to now. Was it the pull of soulmates? Was it an obligation to let this relationship end on a good note?

Before he could think more about it, Kuroo started pulling him towards one of the smaller streets near the bus station. They passed a few chain stores, a couple street venders, and lots, and lots of people. Tsukishima felt as if his head would break open. He would gladly take ten Hinatas if it meant he didn’t have to listen to this screeching in his brain.

Thankfully, Kuroo took them to their destination swiftly and efficiently—probably acknowledging the pain that Tsukishima was going through. They ended up at a small restaurant on the lonely tail of town, a quaint-looking place overlooking a small lake. As soon as they entered, Tsukishima buried his face in his hands, relief flooding his body.

“How the hell do you live in Tokyo?”

“I got used to it, I guess,” Kuroo laughed, sounding slightly strained with worry. “Hanging in there?”

Tsukishima took a breath. Then, another.

“Yeah.”

“Welcome!” an elderly lady ushered them into the building, and after they kicked off their shoes, Kuroo chose seating far away from others. There weren’t many people in the restaurant, but more than three was definitely a crowd especially now. He could hardly handle his own thoughts sometimes, but, more than two? Impossible. He was grateful that Kuroo understood.

It was a cute, traditional place with paper doors and tatami mats. The building itself seemed to be boat-shaped, hanging off the edge of the lake as if it were a ship getting ready to sail. The employees working were quiet and kind, not bothering them unless asked.

“Do you come here often?”

“Not too often, but the owner does recognize me. I think she has a similar mind-reading type superpower so she understands favoring the quiet.”

Tsukishima appreciated it, even more so because Kuroo was thinking of him. Well, he was thinking of how his own superpower worked and taking Tsukishima to places he knew were manageable so it wasn’t anything incredible, but it still meant a lot.

Even though it shouldn’t have.

A waiter popped by and handed them a menu. Looking over the selection offered, Tsukishima settled with a simple bowl of meat over rice and Kuroo ordered some miso soup. They sat in comfortable silence as they waited for their dinner, listening to the waves lap at the shores outside.

Soon, their meals arrived and they both dug in, too caught up in eating to bother with conversation. Thankfully, Kuroo seemed to be wholly focused on his soup, as no other thoughts entered Tsukishima’s head. The captain ate faster than Tsukishima, but, together they finished their dinners, relishing in each other’s presence.

The quiet was calming.

“Kuroo-chan!”

They both turned to see a kindly old lady with an apron walking towards their table. She smiled sweetly at Kuroo, pouring them more water from a jug. “It’s been a while, how have you been?”

“Oba-san, hello, I’m fine, thank you! Your food is always great.”

“That so? I’m glad… and who is this? It’s not the friend with the bleached hair you hang around, right? My, my, you’ve grown.”

“Uh—” Tsukishima started.

Kuroo laughed, saving Tsukishima from responding. “This is Tsukishima. He’s…” Kuroo glanced at Tsukishima briefly and Tsukishima found himself flushing. He stared back, hoping he could let Kuroo know that it was okay. It was the least Tsukishima could do for today. Kuroo seemed to understand, turning back towards the lady, with a grin that tugged the corners of his mouth. “My soulmate.”

“My, my, what a handsome young fellow, he is. I’m glad you came,” she said and Tsukishima felt like burrowing his head under the lake. “Whenever you’re ready, I can ring you up and I’ll cut half-price just for you and your handsome soulmate, Kuroo-chan!”

“Wh-oh, thank you so much!”

“Yes, yes.”

With that, the lady left and the two were left alone once more in silence.

“Was that okay, Tsukki? I know it’s—that you’re…”

“It’s fine.”

Kuroo peeked up at him, grinning sheepishly. “Just, fine?”

“It’s—” Tsukishima reconsidered, averting his gaze. “It’s nice. She’s nice.”

That big smile returned and honestly, Tsukishima thought seriously about reconsidering his stance on soulmates as well.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

By the time they left the restaurant, the sun was starting to sink slowly beyond the city skyline. Just as before, Kuroo swiftly lead them to their next destination, crossing a bridge into a smaller neighborhood. There, the voices lessened and Tsukishima felt the majority of his stiffness dissipate.

They found the café nestled in between a convenience store and a bookstore. The two of them entered, making the bell on the front door chime shortly. The place looked slightly abandoned save for the quiet murmurs of two customers and a single barista. It had wood floors, and a homey atmosphere with soft music playing in the background. They walked up to the display stands, surveying the menu behind the coffee machines.

“Anything you want, Tsukki? You didn’t even finish your dinner at the restaurant. I can get you something.”

“I finished most of it,” Tsukishima argued. Nevertheless, he took a look, eyes flitting through the drink options. Eventually, his gaze dropped down to the display in front of them, and his stare lingered for a moment too long on a strawberry shortcake. He looked back up quickly. “Anything is fine.”

Kuroo squinted. “You were giving that shortcake a pretty long look-over.”

“I wasn’t.”

“You were.”

Tsukishima shrugged. “I like them. They’re…” the next words he spoke made him want to die of embarrassment. “They’re my favorite. I know it’s dumb.”

“What?” Kuroo barked, and Tsukishima was half-afraid the captain would say that it didn’t suit him or the pastry was too sugary for them as athletes, but instead, he gestured for the barista and pointed directly at the cake. “Can I have two slices of this and an espresso?”

“W-wait, Kuroo-san,” Tsukishima laughed nervously and damn, why was he nervous? Why did he feel this warmth spread across his chest? Why did Kuroo have to take initiative like that? “It’s fine, I’m okay with a drink—”

“You want a drink too?”

“That’s not what I said.”

“That’s what I heard.”

The two stared each other down, and Tsukishima sighed softly, fiddling with the straps on his bag. “Th-thank you.”

“No problem,” Kuroo beamed. The barista gestured for him to follow her to the register. “Find a seat for us somewhere, yeah?”

So, Tsukishima left to do just that, finding a two-seater in view of the cakes. He sat down, watching Kuroo talk with the barista about the change he needed. The other two customers—a young lady in formal attire talking into a cell phone, and an elderly man with a newspaper—weren’t doing much, and their thoughts were easy enough to ignore. It was quaint, quiet, and Tsukishima felt a rush of gratitude well up in his chest again.

“ _The hot guy is back again, I think I’m going to go for it_!”

Tsukishima blinked. He looked up to match the speaker with the thought. As the voice was feminine and the female customer seemed preoccupied with stocks, there was only one other person it could be.

With a pit of dread growing in his stomach, Tsukishima located the cashier and there she was, eyeing Kuroo with an infatuated fervor as he—the idiot, was counting his coins on the counter.

It wasn’t as if it were uncommon to date before meeting your soulmate and even those who had soulmates often went after other love interests with more favorable superpowers. It was a pain after all, Tsukishima had said it himself—getting killed by your own soulmate was the very definition of irony. In any other situation, Tsukishima would have—should have been glad for it. Here was someone who could take Kuroo away, someone who could probably indulge in all of his romantic fantasies with him. Someone who didn’t flinch or shy away at the thought of simply holding hands with him.

Yet, there Kuroo was, completely oblivious to the inner turmoil Tsukishima and the girl were having over him. It was irrational and stupid, but the blonde stood up, words on his lips before he could even think to do otherwise.

“Kuroo-san—”

Kuroo looked up, finally having grabbed the appropriate change. He smiled at Tsukishima and Tsukishima wanted to smack him for being so oblivious. “I’ll be right there, Tsukki!” He handed the cashier the change, she handed him his receipt and before she could say anything else, Kuroo trotted over to their table.

“What’s up?”

“N-nothing, I just—I got us a table.”

“You sure? You sounded kind of urgent—did I get your order wrong?” he handed Tsukishima the receipt and the first-year stared at it blankly. He felt his face get warm.

“It’s fine.”

“ _When he picks up the order, I’ll get him then!_ ”

“You sure?”

“Just,” Tsukishima grit. “Great.” He paused momentarily to collect himself. “Kuroo-san, I’ll pick up the order.”

Kuroo blinked. “Sure?”

“You’ve been leading me around all day, you must be tired.”

Laughing, Kuroo leaned more comfortably into his chair. “It’s fine though, but if you say so. Thanks, Tsukki.”

The cashier called out their order and Tsukishima got up, receipt in hand. He approached the counter, ready to take their coffee and cakes and head back to the table immediately, but the girl seemed persistent.

“Hey, can you call the guy you’re with over?”

Tsukishima opted to drop the receipt on the counter. He grabbed their purchases. “He’s busy.”

“Just for a little bit, I want to ask him— _c’mon, don’t be difficult_ —”

“He’s. Taken.”

The girl paused, taken aback by the shortness of his reply. She considered. “And I’m guessing you’re his soulmate? _Given your attitude_.”

“I—” Tsukishima hesitated, frozen in front of the counter, holding the tray. She seemed nice enough, but her thoughts seemed to betray her true intentions.

“If he isn’t, then what’s the problem? You on a date? _He could probably do better._ ”

“Yes,” Tsukishima could admit that much.

“Oh,” she sighed, tucking a lock of hair behind her ear. “I’m sorry about that, then. _Damn._ I hope you two enjoy your cake. If you have any second thoughts though, could you let him know I’m interested? _I hope he comes back alone._ ”

“Sorry, no,” Tsukishima said, grabbing some napkins and forks. “He’s already found his soulmate.”

At that, Tsukishima headed back, embarrassment invading every part of his being. Yeah, Kuroo found his soulmate, but his soulmate didn’t want to be found. Did that mean anything? Was he just being silly and overly possessive? Jealousy was not becoming. What was he even jealous about?

Seeing Kuroo tentatively tapping his phone screen made Tsukishima feel justified. Even if he had said this whole ordeal would be over after the week, that still meant Kuroo was his for that week and he could take advantage of that if he wanted to.

Then, afterwards, everything would go back to normal and Kuroo would never find out about how petty he acted towards the barista lady. That would be fine.

Tsukishima sat down and Kuroo pocketed his phone. “Thanks, Tsukki,” He said even though he was the one who paid. The captain leaned over to grab a plate of cake and his espresso.

“Yeah,” Tsukishima said, taking his own plate and digging into the pastry. Kuroo watched him for a moment, blowing softly on his drink.

“Damn, Tsukki, I thought you didn’t eat a lot, but apparently all I had to do was give you some strawberry shortcake.”

“It’s…” Tsukishima put down his fork, the plate scraped clean of all traces of cake. It was moist and delicious and he didn’t even realize he was scarfing it down like some animal. He cleared his throat, warmth in his cheeks. “It’s been a while, that’s all.”

“Here,” Kuroo offered Tsukishima his slice, sliding it in front of the first-year. Tsukishima looked at it and then looked back up at Kuroo. “I’m not a huge fan of sweets anyways.”

“But, this is yours?”

Kuroo shrugged. “And, now, it’s yours,” he said coolly, leaning down to take a sip of his drink and recoiling almost instantly. “Ah—fuck, still hot.”

Tsukishima reluctantly started on the second slice, taking care to eat more slowly this time. “Cat’s tongue?”

“It sucks,” Kuroo sighed dramatically, resuming to blow on the espresso. “How will I ever survive the real world, Tsukki? I can’t even finish a coffee in the morning rush hour in between the time it takes to get from the coffee shop to work. I’m not ready for adulthood.”

“Guess you’ll just die, then.”

“Wow, rude,” Kuroo chuckled, tentatively trying a sip once more. It was better this time and he took a small slurp. It should not have been that cute.

From there, they got into a steady rhythm of conversation. Tsukishima told Kuroo about Nishinoya’s stupid dream, and Kuroo laughed saying that his brain probably focused on the libero _because_ he was so annoyed. Kuroo told Tsukishima about their new teammate who had been driving Kenma crazy, and Tsukishima smiled, listened, and finished his cake. For such a small café, it was really good. He wanted to come back.

But, maybe he felt that way because he was in good company.

“Hey,” Kuroo suddenly whispered after a good while of talking normally. “What’s that guy thinking?” He pointed towards the elderly man who was now trying to solve the sudoku puzzle on the back of his newspaper.

Tsukishima blinked. “Why do you want to know?”

“I just…” Kuroo paused, considering. There was a mess of static that Tsukishima received, but it didn’t bother him as much as it should have. “It’s a weird thing, not knowing for myself.”

It was definitely weird to Tsukishima, but in a different, unfamiliar way. This man was a stranger and thus, he shouldn’t be important. Yet, Kuroo seemed to desperately want to hear the man’s thoughts, no matter how meaningless they were.

“Well,” Tsukishima obliged, looking down at his two empty plates. “He’s just wondering if puzzle makers today are trying hard enough.”

“What about her?” Kuroo pointed to the lady who was typing furiously into a laptop.

“She’s thinking about how she wants to murder someone for not doing their part of the company project.”

“And her?” he tilted his head towards the barista.

“She—” Tsukishima flushed, remembering his conversation with her. “Something about closing up soon or something, I don’t know, Kuroo-san, please—”

“Sorry, sorry,” Kuroo laughed, hands up in defense. “Though I couldn’t hear, you two seemed to be getting along well when you went up to get our things—but, yeah, you’re right, we should be heading back, it’s getting late.”

With that, the two cleaned up their table, turned in their tray, and started to slowly make their way back to the station. It was a little quieter now that it was night, but to Tsukishima, it was still torture to walk through even a semi-crowded area of the city.

He was glad Kuroo’s hand was there to ground him.

They didn’t wait long for the right bus to come along and then, it was mostly silent. Tsukishima still plugged his headphones in just in case, but he didn’t turn on any music.

“Hey, Kuroo-san?”

“Hm?”

“You’re a third-year… Nationals won’t come again. Are you really okay spending time with me like this?”

Kuroo exhaled, a wide grin on his lips. “Kinda late to ask that, isn’t it, Tsukki?”

“I guess,” Tsukishima huffed, his own small smile reappearing. “But, really, is it…?”

“Yeah, it’s fine,” Kuroo hummed, looking out the opposite window as the night lights flit by. “Nationals is now, but you’re forever.”

Tsukishima flushed. “Wha—”

“Shit, did I—” Kuroo threw a hand over his mouth, laughing awkwardly. “Sorry, I’m really tired, ahaha…”

_“Fuck, fuck, fuck, I’m an idiot, it was going so well and you just had to screw it up, didn’t you, Kuroo. I can’t believe I said that out loud, not that it would have mattered cause you would have thought it you absolute sadsap—"_

Tsukishima couldn’t say anything else, ‘forever’ playing on repeat in his head. The thought of Kuroo in his forever made him feel warm and soft, and it made him feel happy, as much as he wanted to deny it.

“Besides,” Kuroo stammered. “I didn’t really do anything fancy today. Just took you on a hike and then we ate afterwards.”

“I didn’t ask for anything fancy, Kuroo-san.”

“But, I wanted today to be special.”

Tsukishima swallowed. “It was.”

Glancing down once to judge the distance, Tsukishima’s fingers slowly found Kuroo’s and he held on tight. Through the window reflection, Tsukishima saw Kuroo jump, look down at their laced fingers, and then a smile bloomed across his face—one that reached his ears and made him seem like the happiest man in the world.

_Fuck. How did hand-holding do that?_

Tsukishima flipped through his playlists, played one, and then closed his eyes for the rest of the trip. Kuroo sat silently next to him, and only moved when they neared their stop.

Wordlessly, the two got off the bus and headed towards the school gates. The moon was high in the sky and the summer air was thick and humid, but, Tsukishima didn’t dare let go. Kuroo didn’t either.

Everyone seemed to be getting ready to go to bed. All the lights in the gymnasiums were off and there were only small flickers of shadows moving in the buildings around them.

It was only when they reached outside the sleeping areas did Tsukishima pull away from Kuroo’s grasp. The captain smiled, and his eyes seemed to shine with the afterglow of a good day.

“I’ll let the coaches know we’re back. Goodnight, Tsukki. I hope you can get some sleep.”

“Yeah,” Tsukishima said, his hands coming together to pull at his fingers. “Thank you, Kuroo-san.”

Kuroo blinked. “For what?”

“For…” _Being you? Not pushing me? For, just_ … “Today.”

“Of course, Tsukki. _Anything for you_.”

A ridiculous notion, once more. They had only met a few days ago and here was Kuroo saying he would do _anything_ for Tsukishima. This was idiotic.

It was even more idiotic that he was quickly falling for it.

The dream from this morning reentered his thoughts, and he wanted Kuroo to stay just as Sugawara had wanted Daichi to. He didn’t feel as feisty as his vice-captain though, he just wanted someone to be with and envelop him in a kind, gentle presence. He didn’t want the day to end.

Just before Kuroo turned to leave for his school’s sleeping area, Tsukishima grabbed his sleeve. “Kuroo?”

“Hm? Wait, Tsukki, did you just— _Honorifics_ —”

It had been years, probably. He couldn’t even remember the last time he did it, even to his mother or his other family members. Tsukishima always kept to himself and people knew to keep their distance, regardless of any blood ties. So, in honesty, if he did it wrong, then shit, it wasn’t his fault. Grade school was the only time he recalled ever kissing anyone on the cheek.

Tsukishima pulled back, his lips lingering for a slight moment on the side of Kuroo’s face. Kuroo seemed frozen, words dying on his lips, his pupils wide. Tsukishima laughed sheepishly at the sight, already regretting everything. “G-goodnight.”

Tsukishima didn’t want to sprint and make a bigger fool of himself so he only took up a brisk walk towards his school’s sleeping area. He knew he looked as red as he felt, and he swore he would stop by the bathhouse to drown himself in the tubs later. He didn’t have to look back (nor did he want to) to check on the Nekoma captain’s status.

After all, the internal screaming ringing in Tsukishima’s head was definitely from Kuroo.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Feedback is always appreciated! ^^ Honestly though, when I was feeling a little depressed over the past few weeks, I'd look back at the comments and feel motivated to write again. You are all truly game-changers xDD Thanks for reading!!
> 
> You can find me below~  
> [Twitter](https://twitter.com/tetsookie)  
> [Tumblr](http://greendoodle.tumblr.com/)


	4. Four you, it's Easy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> He was reminded again about his inadequacies, his flaws, his faults, and everything he could be, but wasn’t. It was utter stupidity.
> 
>  
> 
> _If Hinata had a soulmate, he would embrace them and overcome any obstacle._
> 
>  
> 
>  Tsukishima almost spat in disgust. Hinata already had a soulmate. And, they were getting along just fine. The most he could manage without internally combusting was a kiss to the cheek.
> 
>   _Was he going to lose to Hinata in this too?_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys, I'm back in time for Tsukki's birthday!! It's been a rough month for me--I've been to the hospital a total of 5 times in the past few weeks, it has NOT been fun, but thankfully things are winding down and I'm setting a schedule to update more frequently! I've already started the next chapter so, fingers crossed!
> 
> Anyway, without further ado, I would just like to apologize to Tsukki for such a depressing chapter on his birthday, but that's how it goes xDD Hope you guys enjoy nevertheless~ ^^

He stood on the court, watching the net loom in front of him, an insurmountable wall. He felt his chest constrict, deep breaths leaving and entering his lungs at a pace he found uncomfortable.

This was it. It was over.

He was too inadequate, too inexperienced, too small in the face of his opposition. The floor threatened to swallow him up and take him lower, deeper, lesser than he was, lesser than he is, lesser than all he could be. He couldn’t make it out of this. He just wasn’t fit for it. He wasn’t right. He wasn’t supposed to be here.

But, he wouldn’t give up. He ran with all his might, chasing the feeling away, escaping the insecurities that had built up from within. The crushing guilt and pain seemed to dissolve with each heavy step he took. Each slam of his shoes against the floor was a reminder that he was here, he was now, and he wouldn’t be ignored.

Then, at the foot of the net, he jumped.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the strands of his orange hair sway as if caught in a gentle breeze, and the volleyball entered his peripheral a moment later. It was as if time stood still. He was flying.

Looking out over the net, he saw the view he’d seen only a few times in the past. The wide court of the other side—the gym floor open and inviting, asking, asking, asking for the ball. And of course, he would give in to its requests.

Because here, he was just as tall as the rest of them. He was just as big, and he was just as important. And, he wouldn’t let anyone tell him otherwise.

He swung forward at the point of impact, and watched as the volleyball left his fingers and soared across the sky, finding its way snugly to an opening on the ground.

Hinata Shouyou.

He was here.

Tsukishima got up blearily as his teammates started to stir around him. He looked out across the room to find Hinata’s content face, his lips upturned in a smile, drool trailing out of his mouth. Tsukishima grimaced.

That was a nightmare.

It was the first time he hadn’t been aware of his own consciousness while experiencing someone else’s dreams, and although he did feel as if he got more sleep tonight than the night before, he couldn’t help but feel even more exhausted by the contents of said dream.

Tsukishima had said it many times—it was ridiculous Hinata dreamed so big as someone who was so small. It was ridiculous and stupid, and frankly, quite horrible. Yet, the little pipsqueak always bounced back up with no regard for reality or rules because he believed he could. He believed he was.

That belief was the worst part.

As a middle blocker, he is better than Hinata in every single way, and yet, there was always a nagging feeling in the back of his head that told him that he isn’t. That, he wouldn’t be. The redhead’s insatiable hunger would drive Tsukishima back, and he would end up benched.

He wondered if that was for the best.

It was just a game after all.

“Tsukishima, you alright?”

As Nishinoya threw back the curtains on the far side of the room, Tsukishima turned to find Sugawara looking over him with concern. The first-year flushed, remembering his dream from the previous night.

“Fine,” he bunched up the blankets near his legs. “Didn’t sleep well.”

“Oh, that’s right, you got back pretty late last night, huh?” Sugawara smiled, though there was a hint of mischief in his hazel eyes. “Had fun?”

The ‘ _with Kuroo_ ’ went unsaid, but Tsukishima heard it loud and clear in Sugawara’s head. He spluttered as he recalled the last thing he did. “No.”

Sugawara hummed knowingly. “Okay,” he turned to check on the rest of their teammates. “I’m rooting for you, you know? …whatever that means for you.”

Tsukishima blinked, watching his vice-captain gather up his futon and walk over to Daichi. The words circled around in his head. _Whatever that means for you._

What did Tsukishima even want to do? With volleyball, with Kuroo?

He scratched his head in frustration as Hinata screamed something about washing up and he and Kageyama were out the door in a flurry of pillows and blankets. Tsukishima stared after them, feeling a vein pulse in his head.

What a pain.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Although Tsukishima was annoyed by the circumstances surrounding the soulmate fiasco at the start of the week, his irritation was possibly at its peak today.

He didn’t know if it was because of Hinata’s stupid dream, Sugawara’s encouragement that seemed to backfire, or embarrassment over his kiss last night, but he found it harder than ever to stay positive throughout the day.

By their second loss, Tsukishima was exhausted both physically and mentally. Although most of the players’ thoughts were shut out of his mind in favor of his own, he honestly probably preferred hearing his opponents because whatever he was debating inside his head was a whole trainwreck in and of itself.

He stopped to catch his breath and watched as the rest of Karasuno raced up the grassy hill for the umpteenth time that week. Yamaguchi expressed some concerns for him, but Tsukishima couldn’t care less. Maybe in time he’d feel guilty, but now, his thoughts were focused on useless topics like soulmates, volleyball, and Hinata.

Tsukishima didn’t know if it was the dream itself that empowered the shorter middle blocker or if Hinata was just being extra aggravating today on purpose, but seeing the redhead hop around on and off the court was driving Tsukishima mad. He was reminded again about his inadequacies, his flaws, his faults, and everything he could be, but wasn’t. It was utter stupidity.

 _If Hinata had a soulmate, he would embrace them and overcome any obstacle_.

Tsukishima almost spat in disgust. Hinata already _had_ a soulmate. And, they were getting along just fine. The most he could manage without internally combusting was a kiss to the cheek.

_Was he going to lose to Hinata in this too?_

Even as a spike slammed against the tips of his fingers, Tsukishima didn’t seem to register it. He clicked his tongue, watching as the volleyball soared high above the court and landed just outside of his team’s reach.

_So close, yet, not enough._

Like him.

_Stop._

This was gross. He was being gross.

Bokuto hooted from the other side of the net, triumphant and proud. Tsukishima could hear the groans of his teammates as they lost yet another match. He heard the scuffle of shoes as both teams rounded up, preparing for their next match, and in Karasuno’s case, their punishment.

Tsukishima clenched, then unclenched his fists, staring down at nothing at all and ignoring the voices swarming in his head. He could barely feel anything.

_Pathetic._

It was only after their match with Nekoma that the universe seemed to cut him some slack. After the game, Kuroo approached him, a clear look of worry on his face.

“Tsukki, you alright? You seemed a bit… off. _Down_.”

If it had been anyone else, Tsukishima may have brushed them off or snapped at them. But, the captain seemed to have been holding back from talking with him, probably out of consideration for last night. It was endearingly frustrating and ridiculously sweet, and Tsukishima took one look at Kuroo, who, honestly should not look that nervous, and wordlessly reached for his hands.

Time seemed to stand still.

Tsukishima could feel the hard calluses of the man’s fingers against his, the product of his years of hard work. A twinge of guilt over not putting in that same effort came and went like a gust of wind, replaced with a warmth he felt for Kuroo.

He brushed against the captain’s palm with his thumb, feeling a pull stronger than anything he’d felt since yesterday. He wanted to hold tight, he wanted something to lean onto. Something to take him away from his insecurities. It wouldn’t solve everything, he knew, but it would maybe help a little.

But, just as soon as the moment had passed, it stopped. Tsukishima noticed the silence around them along with the bug-eyed looks of the rest of his team—the rest of the gym, it seemed like. He hastily pulled back, furrowing his brows at nothing in particular.

“I—I just, you, you hit your finger during that block in the game so I was just checking—”

Kuroo seemed to be physically malfunctioning in front of him, his brain a scratch record on repeat. He composed himself as best as he could, gesturing a negative with his hands in slow-motion. “Ah, no, I’m… I’m okay, I’m— _fuck, what the hell was that, Tsukki, that was way too adorable_ , I’m—fine. Great! I’m fantastic, wonderful, ahah, just, was worried about you?”

Tsukishima huffed, but it lacked any bite. He felt exhausted. He hadn’t meant to grab Kuroo’s hand—it was merely habit from yesterday, but somehow in his sleep-delirious state he convinced himself that it was a good idea at the time. He turned away, shooting his team a glare. They dispersed like rats.

“Tsukki?”

“I’m fine.”

“If you say so,” Kuroo smiled that small smile of his and Tsukishima’s hands twitched with want once more. “Do you want to come by later to gym three again? To practice this time.”

“Yeah,” Tsukishima found himself agreeing before he could properly think about it. “Okay.”

“Great!” Kuroo beamed and Tsukishima felt as if there were a tornado in his brain, ripping up any logical thoughts he had rooted to the ground. “We won’t go easy on you!”

And, for the first time that day, Tsukishima managed a small smile himself, the fire of competition flickering ever so slightly in the recesses of his being.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ignoring Hinata’s yells to Kageyama about practicing together, Tsukishima made his way to the third gym, towel in hand. The rest of the day had gone about just as well as the start of the day had, and he wanted no more than to lay down and rest.

But, as some of the upperclassmen were already strategizing in the sleeping rooms, Tsukishima could only find peace in the baths. And, if he was going to be joining Kuroo in third gym, he had to wash up later.

Why he couldn’t just go to the baths and forget about extra practice with Kuroo at all, he didn’t know.

It was frustrating. It was as if he had originally wounded himself with his cynicism over soulmates, and consequently cursed himself to view every interaction with a grain of salt. He was soulmates with the Nekoma captain, but he didn’t want anything to do with him after the week was over. Yet, he still gave him a chance, and only opened up the wound further.

They were just soulmates after all. They weren’t dating or in a relationship. Just inconveniently tied to each other by ‘fate.’

Yet.

There was a pull, and Tsukishima was not stupid enough to deny it. But, the issue lay in whether he would be pulled along by the current, or if he would push back, returning everything to the sand, where everything was normal, where everything was grounded, where everything was as it was before Kuroo Tetsurou.

“You’re very insecure, Tsukishima.”

Tsukishima blinked as he entered the gym to find two piercing emerald eyes bore into him, all-knowing and intense without the rush of a storm. Even though the man was shorter, Tsukishima felt as if he were shrinking in his gaze. “E-excuse me?”

Akaashi seemed to consider him a moment longer before looking down at his hands. His fingers were picking at one another. “I could hear you from here.”

Looking at his upperclassman in confusion, he opened his mouth to ask for clarification before a broader man barreled into Akaashi, yelling the blonde’s name.

“Tsukki, you came!!”

“Please don’t call me that.”

“Kuroo!” Bokuto called over his shoulder, ignoring Tsukishima’s requests. “Your soulmate is here!”

“He’s—” Tsukishima started, but his protests died in his throat as he saw Kuroo in the far end of the gym perk up from organizing the ball cart. He wheeled the container aside, trotting up to them with a smile on his face that made it seem as if he’d won the lottery.

“Tsukki!”

Tsukishima flushed and felt acutely aware of Akaashi watching him intently. Before he could properly quash the mess in his heart, and the chaos in his head however, he heard a squawk from behind him.

“You’re practicing with Fukurodani’s ace?!”

He winced and looked behind him to find Hinata standing on his tiptoes at the bottom of the steps, peering into the gymnasium with open curiosity. A grimace made its way easily to Tsukishima’s face.

“What happened to your partner?”

“He practicing on his own,” Hinata explained, totally oblivious to the growing irritation of his teammate. The sound of approaching footsteps was soon drowned out by two first-years excitedly yelling together.

“Please let me practice with you!” Hinata and Lev shouted in sync.

As if Tsukishima’s annoyance couldn’t grow more. He watched as Lev entered the gymnasium as well, talking animatedly with Hinata. Bokuto welcomed the two in without any trouble, but Kuroo at least had the consideration to shoot Tsukishima an uneasy glance. He sighed, watching everyone spread out into teams of three. Well, it’s not like he had any say in it after all—he was only a guest here anyways.

Kuroo made it a point to take him onto his team along with Lev while Bokuto and Akaashi took Hinata. Tsukishima didn’t know if it was better this way—to deal with the redhead across the court or as a teammate. Neither would have been nice. Not that that was an option.

“Hey, Tsukki, you alright? I know you didn’t exactly invite that shrimp of yours,” Kuroo started, looking over before reaching forward to grasp Tsukishima’s fingers. Tsukishima retreated without thinking, his thoughts a maelstrom of insecurities and anger as they had been for the entirety of the day.

“It’s fine.”

“ _It doesn’t look fine_ ,” Kuroo’s words echoed in his head, but he pulled away, looking a little saddened. The captain played it off with resting a hand on the blonde’s shoulder. _“Hope I didn’t push it too far.”_

Again, Tsukishima felt that twinge of guilt and he tried to swallow it down, shake it off and focus on the game.

Boyfriends held hands and they _weren’t_ boyfriends.

They were soulmates.

Nothing more, nothing less.

After Akaashi mentioned something about the unjustness of team heights, they started their makeshift game, each team scoring off the other at a constant pace.

It was easy enough to read Hinata or Bokuto and Tsukishima found immense satisfaction blocking a spike from the former of the two. Although he was able to read Bokuto’s movements fairly easily, it was difficult putting his thoughts into play as the third-year moved in a way that was more practiced and experienced.

His team was doing well, but he didn’t expect anything less from Kuroo. Lev on the other hand seemed to fumble more than was necessary, though his height made up for the blunders most of the time.

Honestly, the game was going a lot better than any of their games earlier in the day so Tsukishima was thankful for that. Getting to shut out Hinata helped clear some of the doubt from his head as well.

In an especially long rally, Kuroo had received the ball and was sending it over the net when something peculiar happened. The ball whizzed above the heads of the ‘Owls’ but, as Akaashi dived for it and made contact with his fist, there was no sound.

The situation surprised everyone, though Akaashi in particular as he fumbled the ball, knocking it out of bounds, and towards one of the far walls of the gym. For a moment, there was no sound—the ball had even hit the metallic pillars of the building soundlessly before rolling to a complete stop.

“K-Keiji, how did you do that!” Bokuto was the first to speak up, a volume that contrasted with the previous silence.

“I… I didn’t,” he responded curtly, getting up and dusting himself off. “If I had to guess, it must have been Kuroo-san.”

Kuroo blinked. “Me?”

“Wait, but Tsukishima can’t do that! He’s never silenced objects before!” As if verifying his statement, Hinata turned to the blonde, brows furrowed in thought. “Right?”

“I don’t think I’ve ever done that before,” Tsukishima confirmed, though he refused to look Hinata in the eye.

“No one here has a cancellation superpower, but you,” Akaashi pointed out and soon, their prior team arrangements were ignored in favor of testing out his new theory. As predicted, Kuroo was able to cancel noises of inanimate objects, but only for a short period of time and he had less control over it than if he used his borrowed power on people.

“Wow, Tsukki, this is incredible!” he exclaimed, smiling at Tsukishima in a way that—honestly, at this point should be illegal. “I had no idea your power was so versatile!”

“I… I didn’t either.”

As people act on instinct in games, it would be a powerful weapon. The lack of familiar noises they’re used to—the squeak of shoes on the floor, the slam of balls on the court—it was bound to make people slip up more than usual.

It was a great tool for volleyball.

But, Tsukishima hadn’t been the one to discover it.

He felt consumed by another wave of inadequacy, one that was more powerful than any other he had felt throughout the day.

It was _his_ power wasn’t it? It was his and yet, it was Kuroo who discovered how to use it to its full potential.

Because, he couldn’t do it.

Because, he wasn’t _enough_.

What else had he missed? What was he not doing well enough? He already wasn’t a good soulmate, and he knew he wasn’t the best volleyball player, but what else? A bad student? A bad son? Just, barely passing for everything he tried to be?

“Tsukishima,” Akaashi’s voice was calm, but there was stiffness behind it. “Get some water.”

“I don’t nee—” Tsukishima nearly shouted, and he held his head in his hands. He ground his teeth and stayed where he was, trying to steady himself. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Akaashi nudge Kuroo forward.

“Hey, Tsukki,” Kuroo said quietly, barely audible over the renewed banter of Bokuto, Hinata, and Lev throwing a ball around, and his own thoughts. “Do you need to sit down? I know it’s not just me and Bokuto here like last time so I understand if it’s overwhelming to be—”

“No,” Tsukishima grit forcibly, trying to calm the panic raging inside. At least he wasn’t throwing a fit, but maybe that was preferable if it meant he could leave immediately. It wasn’t anyone else’s fault he felt so grossed out by himself. “It’s not them, it’s—”

He paused, breathing out with his nose and trying to relax. He could deal with his stupid insecurities later. Right now, he just had to get through this extra practice without any more accidents happening and he could go and forget everything. Forget everything about how he wasn’t good enough for volleyball or his team, or Kuroo—

“ _It’s me_ , _isn’t it?_ ” Kuroo’s voice echoed in Tsukishima’s mind and the captain seemed to pause momentarily, unhappily considering his options. Finally, he came from the side, leaning in for what seemed to be a reassuring hug.

Tsukishima went rigid, sending the captain a look. He didn’t want anyone else to deal with him. He didn’t know what he looked like or what emotion he was conveying, but Kuroo looked as if he were punched in the stomach and he backed off, clearing his throat and turning away.

Has Kuroo ever, in the history of knowing Tsukishima, ever turned away like that? The raven always seemed like he couldn’t get enough of the blonde, yet there he was, treating Tsukishima as if he didn’t exist.

Tsukishima felt like throwing up.

The game continued, but the atmosphere remained tense. Only Hinata and Bokuto seemed oblivious to the change in team dynamics, though Lev mentioned how “weird you guys are being” which earned him a glare from Kuroo. Their receives, passes, and spikes continued like normal except for the fact that Kuroo wasn’t looking at him anymore.

 _If only I knew what he was thinking_.

As soon as Tsukishima thought that, he wanted to smack himself in the face.

_I know what he’s thinking, I have his powers for god’s sake. He’s focused on the game and not paying any more attention to me at all, and that’s okay. It’s okay because you’re the one who pushed him away and you know you can’t do things as well as he can; this is what you wanted so just deal with the mess you’ve made, just—_

“Woah, Hinata, how’d you do that! It looked like you were flying up there!” Bokuto whooped, watching the score tip in their favor.

“Ah, yeah! I can float for a bit with my power!” Hinata chirped, clearly overwhelmed with, but pleased by the praise. “It’s kind of like levitation?”

“Can I try?!”

The gym went silent again. Akaashi rubbed his temples and Kuroo sighed in fond exasperation. The first-years were the only ones who seemed puzzled.

“Try?” Lev tilted his head.

“Uh, okay, sure!” Hinata responded as only an idiot does, without having all the answers.

“Cool, thanks!” Bokuto grinned, then readied himself in an athletic stance once more. With prompting from the upperclassmen, the others followed suit and the next volley began.

“Nice receive!” Bokuto called as Hinata received the ball cleanly. Akaashi took his position parallel to the net and prepared to send the ball flying towards Bokuto’s direction.

“Bokuto-san!”

“Got it!” Bokuto seemed giddy with excess energy as he ran up, stuck out his tongue and watched the ball speed towards him. He jumped up and stopped midair like Hinata, watching the ball with a ravenous hunger before he spiked it down on the other side of the net, _hard_.

Tsukishima let it whiz past his arms.

Kuroo was there to receive, but it was too powerful and the ball hit his forearms awkwardly before flying out of bounds.

“Hey, hey, hey!!”

“H-how did you do that, Bokuto-san!!” Hinata ran up to the ace, eyes alight like stars. “You flew like me!”

Bokuto puffed up his chest and held up four fingers. “Four minutes! I can take people’s powers for four whole minutes!”

“He can’t use the same power more than once in a day though,” Akaashi added.

"Keiji, c’mon, it’s still awesome!”

“ _I didn’t say otherwise_ ,” Akaashi thought, but Tsukishima was the only one to hear it.

“Anyway, let’s keep this going! I’m going to use up my four minutes!” Bokuto bellowed and Hinata shouted along with him, both of them letting out war-cries. Kuroo snickered from behind Tsukishima and Lev groaned, complaining about how much more of a pain Bokuto was going to be to block.

As if he had the right to complain—he was in the back this volley.

Kuroo stepped forward to stand side-by-side with Tsukishima. He didn’t once look over, but kept his gaze focused on the opposing team ahead. Tsukishima did the same.

“Concentrate your strength to your fingertips, so you’re not blown back,” Kuroo said. Tsukishima nodded, then gave a small murmur of acknowledgement after realizing that the captain wasn’t looking at him. He didn’t know why he felt this desperation to be looked at. He _disliked_ being noticed. “Arms out front.”

He watched the other side disperse as the serve went in—this time, Bokuto was the one to set the ball, and he set it for Hinata who leapt forward and then slammed face first into the net.

Kuroo bit back a laugh, and Lev giggled openly. Tsukishima snorted as the redhead untangled himself from the bindings, whining loudly. The mood lightened slightly.

“My float didn’t work!”

Akaashi opened his mouth to speak, but was cut off by Bokuto. “That’s cause it’s mine now!”

“Ehh!! Forever?”

Tsukishima stared blankly at one spot on the dunce’s head. He could feel Kuroo watching the other side of the net with amusement. “ _Bokuto literally told you he takes your powers for four minutes and you’re asking if he’s taking it forever.”_

“You’ll have it back soon, Hinata,” Akaashi explained kindly, giving him a small smile. “You’ll just have to work around it for now.”

If Tsukishima had said he expected Hinata to deflate at that, he would have been gravely mistaken. It was probably only in his deepest desires that he wished to see the first-year dejected or distraught by the circumstances and give up before things could get worse. But, of course, the idiot was persistent.

“Okay! I’ll just have to learn to fight without my powers!” he chirped happily, then set about to doing just that.

Tsukishima didn’t understand it.

It wasn’t the same situation with soulmates where he wouldn’t have his powers for a week, but it was still essentially a stranger taking something that’s yours and using it without your permission.

 _But, Bokuto did ask for permission_.

The reasons for why he would do such a thing boggled Tsukishima’s mind, but needless to say, he was irritated. He didn’t know if he was irritated with himself or with Hinata or with Bokuto or Kuroo, but he was annoyed and upset, and he was going to fall apart again all because the idiot had to try.

It’s not even the fact that he tries that bothers him, it’s probably the fact that he tries and everyone believes he can do it. But mostly, Hinata believes that he could do it himself.

No matter what.

Tsukishima was surrounded by all these talented people, and he couldn’t even do a simple thing as dating his soulmate correctly. It was ridiculous, but he knew he shouldn’t have been allowed to have a ‘fated pair’ to begin with, because he’s already messing it up and it hasn’t even been a full week since they met. Kuroo was trying so hard and Tsukishima was pushing him away just as he pushed volleyball away and his brother, and his insecurities—

“Tsukishima,” Akaashi’s voice cut clear through the thoughts. Tsukishima halted as a shiver ran down his back. Unlike before when Akaashi was being polite and careful, this time he had said his name with authority and power. The upperclassman looked at him, and Tsukishima could see the faint crease in his brow. “Step outside.”

Kuroo seemed alarmed at the very idea. “Wait, Akaashi, what’s—”

Akaashi turned to give Kuroo an icy glare that had the captain silent in an instant. It was as if Akaashi himself had received Tsukishima’s powers instead of Kuroo. Even Lev and Hinata seemed to understand the apparent gravity of the situation and kept silent.

“Wait, Keiji, I still have like, three minutes!” Bokuto said, a hint of a whine in his voice. In reality, he probably only had a little over a minute left. “Can we still play?”

“Yes,” Akaashi responded and his tone seemed to soften a little. “I’ll be back, I just need to talk with Tsukishima.”

“Okay!” Bokuto gave a thumbs up before arranging a two-on-two with the remaining members of the group. Akaashi watched them briefly before starting to head towards the gym entrance.

“I—” Tsukishima started, but Akaashi looked at him out of the corner of his eye as he passed and suddenly, Tsukishima felt as if he had no say in the matter.

Giving one final look towards Kuroo—who was pointedly still not looking at him, he exited out of the same doors he entered into the darkness outside, feeling colder than he had ever felt before.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Since this takes place around the part in canon where Tsukishima is still struggling with his insecurities and volleyball play, I wanted to incorporate that into the story. His negative feelings are heightened by his sudden introduction to soulmates, among other nuisances. I swear I love Hinata xD anywho, as a token for the pain I've caused in this chap, have this [doodle](https://twitter.com/tetsookie/status/1045448652376793088)  
> Thank you all for your sweet comments last time!! I was a little disheartened by my frequent hospital visits, but each and every comment really kept my spirits up!! As always you can find me below. Thanks for reading!  
> [Twitter](https://twitter.com/tetsookie)  
> [Tumblr](http://greendoodle.tumblr.com/)


	5. To Survive

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> People’s lives flash before their eyes before they die.
> 
> Tsukishima knew of this phenomenon, but he never thought he’d get to experience it so early in his teenage years.
> 
> This whole soulmate ordeal was really out to get him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! It hasn't exactly been a month, but oh man, right after my health issues, midterms hit and I've been SWAMPED. Fortunately, they're over now and this fic is almost done! Here's a short update for now, but I plan to update again next week, then the week after that so stay tuned! ^^
> 
> For this update, I would like to pay a homage to the anon on tumblr who sent me [this lovely song](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GDVaa3z8jHw) that really captures the first time Tsukishima discovered his powers! You rock, whoever you are! XDD
> 
> Anyway, enjoy! <3

People’s lives flash before their eyes before they die.

Tsukishima knew of this phenomenon, but he never thought he’d get to experience it so early in his teenage years.

This whole soulmate ordeal was really out to get him.

If encountering his soulmate was a fatal inconvenience, speaking to Akaashi was definitely considered something like a near-death experience.

As the second-year wordlessly headed towards the back of the building, Tsukishima found himself thinking about the first time his powers had manifested.

He had been walking home from school with Yamaguchi when a bunch of bolder bullies had decided to follow them. Why they had nothing better to do was beyond Tsukishima’s comprehension, but he figured these kinds of people were just like that.

“Hey, Freckle-face, why are you hiding behind Lankyshima over there?”

“Yeah, learn how to fight your own battles, you coward!”

“C’mere, and maybe we’ll let your friend go!”

Yamaguchi turned to Tsukishima, a face full of guilt. “Tsukki, maybe I should—”

“Just ignore them, Yamaguchi.”

Reluctantly, Yamaguchi kept his mouth shut, trying his hardest to tune out the bullies’ jeers. It worked about just as well as one might’ve expected until one of the older boys reached forward to grab at Yamaguchi’s arm.

“Hands off,” Tsukishima ground, eyes narrowing into slits. He shoved his way in between his whimpering friend and the bully. “Let it go. You’re a nuisance.”

Tsukishima recognized the kid. He was one of the kids who had first bothered Yamaguchi that day they first met. The boy was apparently the king of the playground, but the moment Tsukishima had arrived, his status as the alpha had been questioned and fought against. It was only natural he would bear some kind of grudge towards Tsukishima, though, he wouldn’t fight the blonde directly, only going after Yamaguchi.

It was pathetic.

“Screw you!” the boy yelled, glaring at Tsukishima. “Just cause you’re taller doesn’t mean you can just do whatever you want.”

“And, just because you’re shorter doesn’t mean you have to be a sore loser.”

The kid snarled, and was about to bite back with another response, but he seemed to choke on his words and stumbled forward. Tsukishima continued to stare down at him with little interest or any particular thought whatsoever.

Only annoyance and anger.

The boy glared up at Tsukishima, clutching at his throat with a crazed panic. His friends seemed to grow uneasy at their boss’ silence, shuffling backwards slowly.

‘What did you do,’ the bully mouthed, shooting daggers at Yamaguchi more than Tsukishima.

Tsukishima blinked, also confused, and the spell seemed to break. The boy let out a breath as if he had been holding it, and he backed away to meet his cronies. He was still panting as he pointed a finger right at Tsukishima.

“I don’t know what you did, but you’re a freak! You and plant boy! Hope you both meet your soulmates and  _ die _ .”

“Whatever,” Tsukishima called as the bullies retreated together as a single unit back towards the playground. Yamaguchi looked up at him sheepishly.

“Thanks, Tsukki. That was a cool power!”

“Shut up, Yamaguchi.”

Yamaguchi seemed content with that and hummed happily at his side. They both started walking home once more, the incident unmentioned from that point forward.

Unfortunately, though, that wasn’t the end of it.

The bullies had stopped picking on Yamaguchi which was reassuring, but now there were rumors that carried with Tsukishima until high school.

‘Don’t get near him, he’ll take the breath from your lungs,’

‘He’ll steal your voice and you’ll never be able to talk again,’

‘I feel bad for his soulmate, they’ll probably end up killing each other,’ and other rumors of similar caliber circulated the hallways and added to Tsukishima’s annoyance.

He didn’t care about soulmates, that much was a given. This power was his so he wasn’t handing it off to anyone else that easily.

But, he admitted, it did sting whenever he met someone new and they were too afraid to speak up or talk to him for fear he would take their voice. Tsukishima supposed he deserved it because for the first few months when people confronted him about anything regarding his superpower, he shut them up without hearing them out.

It wasn’t his fault. Most of the kids who came up to him in that way had done so with ulterior motives or bad intentions. It was easy enough to let his emotions flare, easy enough to angrily stare down at these people who clearly didn’t have his best interests in mind. It was easy enough to silence them.

He didn’t listen to what other people said, but, that suited him just fine. He didn’t care if other people misunderstood his intentions and left him alone as a result of it—he  _ wanted _ to be left alone.

The quiet was nice. Comfortable.

Not like whatever this was.

Tsukishima winced as Akaashi sat down on a stone step leading up to who knows where and looked up at him with an unreadable expression.

“Sit, Tsukishima.”

Wordlessly, the blonde obeyed, sitting at least an arm’s length away from the second-year for fear that the man would murder him in cold blood right then and there. He didn’t really know much about Akaashi after all.

The chilly night air seemed to still around them as Tsukishima held his breath, anticipating. He wasn’t completely sure  _ what _ he was anticipating exactly, but, it felt necessary. He couldn’t even read Akaashi’s thoughts so. He fiddled with his fingers quietly, uncertain of what to do.

“When Kou—Bokuto-san and I first met, we almost killed each other.”

Tsukishima blinked, turning to look at Akaashi with an expression that probably was closest to confusion. Akaashi laughed softly for only a brief second that Tsukishima was sure he had hallucinated it. The second-year turned away, bringing his own fingers together to tug.

“It was exasperating. Granted, I didn’t despise the idea of soulmates,” he snuck a glance at Tsukishima, then stared back down at his hands. “But, it’s scary for anyone… the powers that you’ve had for literally your whole life to vanish in an instant. Your world changes and skews. Right isn’t right anymore and left may be up or down. You’re nervous and afraid.”

Akaashi turned to Tsukishima again, holding a firm gaze this time. “You’re nervous and afraid, Tsukishima.”

The blonde stiffened. “I…”

“Kuroo-san feels the same.”

Tsukishima thought about it. Given what he knew about the raven, that was probably true. Even though Kuroo had a great deal of accomplishments to boast about, he was gentle, shy, and kind. And, he worried needlessly. Though, was it needless if most of those worries were about Tsukishima? The blonde didn’t even know what he wanted or how he wanted it most times.

“Do you doubt me?”

“Not…” Tsukishima mulled over his words carefully. He didn’t know what kind of power Akaashi had so he wanted to tread lightly. “Not exactly. But, how can you be so sure? Kuroo—um, Kuroo-san, is…”

Akaashi stared at him, prompting him to continue. Tsukishima swallowed thickly, averting his gaze as if it would keep the static from building in his ears.

“What’s your power, Akaashi-san?”

“You haven’t figured it out by now?”

“Is it similar to Kuroo-san’s?”

“Unfortunately.”

Tsukishima snorted, feeling some tension in his shoulders loosen. “So, some kind of mind reading, then.”

“Close. Not quite.”

The blonde looked at Akaashi inquisitively.

“How do you feel, Tsukishima?”

“How do I—” Tsukishima started before pausing, realization hitting him. “You’re an empath.”

“Correct,” Akaashi smiled. “Or, at least, close enough.”

“That’s how you… why you brought me… how you could tell…” Tsukishima murmured quietly. “I’m sorry about…”

“Don’t be,” Akaashi cut in, a firmness in his tone. “I’m used to it. And, besides, it wasn’t just you.”

“…it was Kuroo-san as well.”

“Now do you believe me?” Akaashi pressed.

He did, but it was still hard to accept it as true. To think that Kuroo was worried or lost because he was equally as affected by the whole soulmate ordeal seemed a little farfetched. It was hard to wrap his head around. Akaashi seemed to study him for a moment.

“Just because you know what he’s thinking doesn’t mean you know how he’s feeling.”

Tsukishima took a shaky breath. “I never wanted this.”

“I understand it may be difficult, but why don’t you hear him out?”

Tsukishima wanted to say that he always heard Kuroo. The blonde heard all of the raven’s thoughts from the good to the bad, from the sappiest, to the most annoying. Wasn’t he always hearing him out?

No, he wasn’t. 

This was just like grade school where he wouldn’t even want anything to do with the other person because he knew, he  _ knew _ that they wouldn’t say anything kind.

But, he didn’t know.

He never gave them a chance. He wasn’t giving Kuroo a chance.

Forget his insecurities, they were clearly unnecessary here. Kuroo was a good guy—no, he was a great guy and he deserved a chance. The chance that Tsukishima kept saying he would give, but couldn’t find it in his heart to.

“Okay,” Tsukishima voiced, resolve building in his mind. Then, more quietly— “Thank you, Akaashi-san.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tsukishima and Akaashi heard him before they even entered the building.

“I thought he was joking about the cake on the hike, but, oh man, Tsukki is a  _ monster _ when it comes to cake. He downed two slices like it was nothing.”

“Do you think he can enter one of those eating competitions? Keiji entered one of those and he won first place!”

“Oh,  _ definitely _ , as long as there’s cake involved—”

Tsukishima was definitely red. Akaashi wasn’t doing much better though as he stormed up the steps to the gymnasium and cleared his throat loudly.

“A-Akaashi,” Kuroo stammered. ‘ _ Is Tsukki with him… _ ?’

“Keiji!” Bokuto called, clearly unashamed that he had been talking about his boyfriend as he rushed forward to drape himself over the second-year. Akaashi smiled softly, running a hand through Bokuto’s hair.

“Where did Hinata and Lev go, Bokuto-san?”

“They left! We finished up a bit ago.”

“Yaku came to get Lev,” Kuroo added, sounding bemused. “He was pretty angry.”

“Nice work,” Akaashi commented as Tsukishima finally entered the building as well, trying not to look at Kuroo.

It was harder than he expected.

In the span of half an hour, Kuroo seemed to have forgotten all about his previous ban on not paying Tsukishima any attention. The moment the blonde entered the gym, he felt golden eyes lock onto him, as if drawn like a magnet to its opposite poles.

Soulmates.

“Tsukki,” Kuroo breathed, as if he couldn’t believe the first-year had returned in one piece from his harrowing adventures with Akaashi.

“Kuroo, c-can we talk?”

Kuroo slumped slightly with relief, but he tried his best to not show it. As if he couldn’t be more obvious—the man was a terrible actor. “S-sure! Right here? Now?”

Tsukishima nodded hesitantly, sending Bokuto and Akaashi a glance.

Akaashi pulled Bokuto away, giving Tsukishima a look before leaving the gymnasium to give the two some space. The two stood in the brightly lit room, Tsukishima staring at the floor and Kuroo sheepishly looking at him.

“I’m sorry, Tsukki.”

Tsukishima started. “About what?”

“About… pushing too hard,” Kuroo continued. “I promised you when this started that I wouldn’t force this. If you wanted nothing to do with me, I told you I would understand.”

“That—no, I—”

“No, listen,” Kuroo laughed and the sound was a little bitter. “I was wrong. I thought I could, but I just can’t stop myself from wanting to touch you or hold you or— _ kiss you _ .”

He hadn’t said the last thing, but Tsukishima heard him all the same.

“I shouldn’t have tried to hug you earlier. I was out of line. I got really upset with myself afterwards. This isn’t what I promised, is what I thought.”

“Kuroo, I didn’t really—”

“And, the truth is, I have no idea what you’re thinking. Like, I  _ think _ I know, but then you pull away and it’s my fault for being too enthusiastic. I shouldn’t be so happy about these things, like when you hold my hand or when you got jealous of that cashier who has a crush on me—it’s so endearing and adorable and I can’t stand the thought of being witho—”

“…you knew that cashier had a crush on you?” Tsukishima repeated dully.

Kuroo stopped, and his thoughts seemed to make some kind of rewind sound as it reiterated what he had just stated only a few seconds ago.

“You knew and you let me go fight with her.”

“You—you fought with her?”

“You knew and…”

“Wait, Tsukki, no that’s not—”

“Shut up,” Tsukishima ground, embarrassment and shame flooding his senses. He felt made fun of. It was illogical, but it was suffocating, drowning out any rational thought process. He wanted his power back, he didn’t want to hear the man’s excuses. “Kuroo-san, you…”

‘ _ You used me _ .’

For the raven’s own satisfaction. He knew that Tsukishima went and fought the jealous, drooling fangirls and fanboys who couldn’t get enough of Kuroo Tetsurou. He knew and he didn’t say anything. He knew Tsukishima had his powers now, he knew that the blonde would hear that cashier’s thoughts.

Is that why Kuroo took him there in the first place?

He was ridiculing him.

Tsukishima’s insecurities flared up once more and he felt helpless to combat it. Of course, this was him, he was the pathetic one for believing in Kuroo’s sweet words and promises of forever. He only wanted to play him, pit him against other potential lovers so that some kind of sick satisfaction was satiated.

When Akaashi had brought him out to the back of the building, Tsukishima wasn’t entirely sure how the Fukurodani ace and setter could possibly have killed each other with the extent of their powers. After all, an empath and a copycat hardly seemed like a deadly combination.

But, clearly, anything was possible if he wanted it hard enough.

And, right now, he wanted nothing more than for Kuroo to disappear.

Tsukishima felt a flare of anger as Kuroo said something, something he couldn’t even register past the thumping and radio static in his head.

How did anyone trust this man at all? He could read your mind, enter your deepest thoughts and still, he was revered as one of the smartest, most athletic people in Tokyo.

Shouldn’t others be wary?

He should’ve been warier.

Or, maybe he just played people that well.

Kuroo reached out after him, but Tsukishima flinched away, his emotions on high. He stormed out of the gym, refusing to listen to another word and leaving cleanup for his upperclassman.

He resolved to avoid Kuroo until this hellish week was over. If that meant excusing himself to go someplace else whenever the teams had free time, so be it.

Once this was over, he could comfortably rest in the silence without his soulmate.

Just like he wanted from the very start.

  
  
  


 

 

 

His chest ached.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all for your feedback as always!  
> As usual, you can find me here  
> [Twitter](https://twitter.com/tetsookie)  
> [Tumblr](http://greendoodle.tumblr.com/)
> 
> The angst will stop next chapter--for better or for worse ^^


	6. Six and Stones may Break my Bones, but your Words will Always

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Kuroo,” Tsukishima whispered, even if he probably had no need to in the near-empty theater.
> 
> “Hm?”
> 
> “I think—” he took a shaky breath. Kuroo was no longer paying attention to the movie. He swallowed thickly, feeling a wetness grow behind his eyes. Kuroo’s eyes widened.
> 
> _‘Shit, is the movie that bad—I know the plot sucks, but—’_
> 
> Tsukishima laughed and it sounded weighted with tears. Gods, this idiot.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> When I say the KuroTsuki fandom is amazing, I really honestly mean it? You guys blew me away with your feedback on last chapter, thank you so much!! I was bracing for comments of 'wow this is kinda short' or 'you finally updated after forever' but, instead someone even thanked me for updating early??? YOU GUYS MAKE ME SO EMOTIONAL??
> 
> To make up for the shortness of last chapter, this one is a whopper! ;D Hope you enjoy! (as if the summary doesn't give some of it away, ahah)

Maybe Tsukishima was over-exaggerating.

But, maybe he wasn’t.

He couldn’t be sure anymore.

Nevertheless, he got through most of the next day with little sleep, pointedly ignoring Kuroo and going out of his way to actively avoid him.

Tsukishima couldn’t shut the man up, but he didn’t have to listen to him if he didn’t want to. Once he had his power back, he could ensure he’d never hear a single word from the captain’s mouth ever again.

‘ _But, he sounds so sad_.’

The blonde looked out across the large gymnasium to find Nekoma on the far side of the room, preparing to fight one of the other Tokyo teams. His teammates looked concerned, and even Kenma was giving Kuroo a side-eye even as he tapped away on his phone.

He just looked so exhausted.

But, it wasn’t Tsukishima’s problem. It wasn’t, yet he felt a seed of guilt sow itself into his chest. After all, it was his fault Kuroo looked like that.

No, no, it wasn’t. It was the third-year’s fault for messing with him. He loved picking on people after all. He was, as others called him, a provocation master. It was in his blood.

In retrospect, Tsukishima should have known—if it was a café that Kuroo frequented, he must have heard that cashier’s thoughts countless times in the past. He should have known the moment Kuroo had started asking about the thoughts of other people. He had purposefully brought Tsukishima there with ulterior motives. It was clear now.

Kuroo’s sunken eyes lifted and locked with Tsukishima’s. The blonde ripped his gaze away immediately.

Akaashi gave Tsukishima a look that he felt instantly. The first-year knew what it was about—the setter could probably feel all the tension in the room and wanted Tsukishima to fix it. He wasn’t going to. Kuroo would get over it. He’d have to.

Granted, he was grateful to Akaashi for the help last night, but, fat lot of help that did in the end, after Tsukishima discovered Kuroo was just messing with him. Half of Kuroo’s feelings of nervousness probably stemmed from guilt. The upperclassman probably didn’t want Tsukishima to find out that he had used him.

He didn’t want to deal with it.

Neither did he want to deal with all the thoughts swirling around in his head from people who were afraid he was more annoyed than usual.

He was.

It wasn’t just annoyance, though, he felt a mixture of guilt and sadness on top of the anger and hurt. Not that anyone else had to know that.

Well, except for Akaashi who had no choice in the matter.

And so, the day ended uneventfully, and Tsukishima was determined to see it through to the end this way. Day five, done and over. Just two more days to endure.

Or, so he thought.

“Hey, Tsukishima, Kuroo seemed to want to talk to you—” Daichi said as they gathered in the cafeteria for dinner. The captain had spoken as the team was halfway through dinner in the mess hall, when most people had already finished with their meals and was off to bed or extra practice.

“Please tell him I’m busy,” Tsukishima responded curtly. The anger from last night was still there, but it was only a low simmer in his stomach now.

“That might be kind of hard since he’s coming over here right now,” Hinata mumbled around his mouthful of rice. Tsukishima started and looked behind him to see the third-year abandon his own team’s table to make his way towards them, jaw set and eyes determined.

“Shit,” Tsukishima swore under his breath, trying to gather up his things as quickly as possible to leave, but failing to do so in time. Kuroo stood behind him, broad shoulders barring any escape.

“Excuse me,” the blonde mumbled, brows furrowing as he held up his tray with both hands as if it would act as a barrier between him and the raven.

“Tsukishima. We need to talk.”

No nickname. It didn’t sting, he reminded himself. He was still mad. “We did talk.”

“No, we didn’t.”

“Yes, we did, don’t you remember last night?” He scoffed, a bitter aftertaste in his mouth. “Don’t tell me you’re so old now that you forgot.”

“No,” Kuroo said again, still refusing to budge. “We didn’t. I did. And then, you did. And both times we didn’t let the other speak.”

“Is that so bad? We said all we needed to,” Tsukishima huffed. He vaguely saw his teammates get up and leave. Others in the cafeteria seemed to grasp the gravity of the situation and made their way out as well which wasn’t surprising given how offbeat the two of them had been all day. Even if they were speaking barely above a whisper, everyone knew it was time to go.

“No, no, we didn’t. Please Tsukishima. One last time and really, I’ll let you go,” Kuroo pleaded. “Just _listen_ to me. Listen and I’ll listen to you.”

Tsukishima was half-convinced that the raven would use his own powers on him to get the blonde to listen, but after a moment of silence, and still finding his voice intact, Tsukishima swallowed, responding. “How can I trust you? You said it yourself—you’ve already broken one promise.”

Kuroo bit his lip, looking conflicted. ‘ _I’m sorry, I just… care about you so much_. _It’s irrational and ridiculous_.’

“I wasn’t making fun of you,” came out of his mouth instead and Tsukishima wished he’d only heard that instead of the nonsense in his head.

“Weren’t you?”

“God, god, no Tsukki—Tsukishima, I…” Kuroo ran his fingers through his hair in frustration, his teeth gnawing at the skin of his lips even more harshly. “I was happy, but not because I wanted you to actually go fight the cashier— _like some kind of badass_ —but, just, happy that you enjoyed yourself that day enough to get all flustered.”

“Yeah, I do go to that café often, but, I didn’t take you there for the sole purpose of making fun of you. I wanted you to be comfortable and that was one of the quietest places I knew. That cashier hadn’t even crossed my mind until we got there and I saw her at the counter. I just wanted you to feel at ease, I don’t know, I thought you’d have gotten that,” Kuroo rambled, and Tsukishima felt the seed of guilt grow larger in his chest. The blonde admitted hesitantly that yeah, he did acknowledge how considerate Kuroo was. Even before the date. And probably even before the whole soulmate thing too. And, probably, it was Tsukishima who wasn’t reciprocating that consideration. Not without reason though. “Once we got there and I realized you’d be hearing her thoughts, I couldn’t help it, I felt like teasing you. That was my bad in the end.”

Kuroo frowned and pointed a finger right in Tsukishima’s face. If they weren’t fighting, the first-year might have thought it looked comical, with the way Kuroo was pouting. “You don’t even know how fucking adorable you are when you blush. _That’s_ what I was happy about, not, not whatever else you were thinking.”

Tsukishima was taken aback by the harshness in the words. Never mind the absolute embarrassing thing that he had just said, Kuroo hardly ever cursed directly to anyone else—from the time he’d known the captain, he found that Kuroo only cursed under his breath or in his head where he wouldn’t be heard.

To think he’d know that fact about Kuroo just after knowing him for a few days, Tsukishima surprised even himself. He was speechless and Kuroo continued.

“And, yeah, maybe I was a _little_ happy that you were jealous. You can’t blame me after all, I was really hoping this soulmate thing would work out, you know! I’m a hopeless romantic, I know I am, can you blame me I want to just—” he clenched his fists and made a show of squeezing his eyes shut tight in agony. Tsukishima thought he looked ridiculous. “Hold your hand or k-kiss you or, just…”

‘ _Why won’t you let me love you_?’

“Kuroo, have you ever thought about how mismatched this was?”

“Huh?”

Tsukishima swallowed, trying to calm his thoughts and bring this up with as much delicacy as possible. “We’re soulmates. Sometimes I wonder if that’s the only reason why you’re so willing to…”

“No,” Kuroo blurted, nearly in panic. “God, wait, Tsukki, is that why— _I knew he had some low self-esteem, but for it to be this_ —”

“No, wait, I—” Tsukishima frowned, staring down at his half-finished dinner. “Let me finish.”

Kuroo lips snapped shut and Tsukishima thought they looked really, really nice. Objectively. Maybe it was because it was as if he had his power again and was using it against Kuroo. That was the only logical reason.

“You’re captain of your team, and, and you’re great at everything you do. I’m just a first-year who doesn’t even want to bother with… the whole soulmate thing. I’m not as… amazing as you.”

Tsukishima laughed bitterly. “You even use my own powers better than me, so it just seems unfair. Unfair to you and a little pathetic of me to want to make this work with…”

Half-assed efforts.

Kuroo was quiet and there was a silent hum of thoughts in Tsukishima’s head. The captain reached forward, grabbing the tray between them and lifting an eyebrow. Tsukishima nodded tentatively, and Kuroo took it and placed it on a table aside from them. It clattered a little noisily through the empty cafeteria. Tsukishima lowered his arms.

“Tsu—” Kuroo began, but stopped, then went for it. “Kei.”

Tsukishima stiffened, his face heating. Still, he waited.

“K-Kei, I don’t know how to tell you this, but you’re beautiful? And, you’re so smart, and talented—even when you don’t think you are! I love little things about you. I love how sharp you are, I love how excited you get about things you find boring, and I love how you never give up even when you’re super annoyed about doing it and complain all the way.”

Tsukishima snorted, bringing his fingers together. Kuroo followed the movement before reaching forward cautiously, pausing right before their hands met. He looked up with a question that Tsukishima was sure he already had the answer to.

Slowly, their fingers intertwined.

Tsukishima would have been lying if he said he hadn’t missed it. Tension seemed to melt out of his shoulders, though he still continued to avert eye contact.

“And you know what? I also love it when you smile, and when you laugh—I love that you enjoy the quiet and have a power that matches that. I love your sweet tooth and your soft hands, and I think I love you Tsukishima Kei.”

Okay, Tsukishima was definitely beet red now.

‘ _Mismatched, huh_?’ Kuroo thought and snorted, grasping Tsukishima’s hands firmly in his. “Yeah, we’re very mismatched. I don’t know how I ever deserved someone like you.”

“That’s my line,” Tsukishima breathed out, an ache in his chest. He knew he’d been unfair to Kuroo, but it was hard not to be. Someone like him shouldn’t even exist. How was he even real? Someone who looked past all his flaws and insecurities and just saw him as him—someone who was patient enough to wait out the whole soulmate thing until he was comfortable.

“Plus,” Kuroo smirked, and it was more endearing than aggravating for once. “I think I may have a thing for glasses.”

“Oh my god,” Tsukishima huffed, rolling his eyes, though the action had no bite.

“Besides, I think you’re giving me too much credit though, Kei,” Kuroo mused, giving the blonde one of those soft smiles that Tsukishima was almost positive he adored now. “People are confusing so it isn’t all that great to have my power.”

“No kidding.”

Kuroo laughed lightly and it felt like fresh air. Even the bags under his eyes seemed to be smaller. “No, really, ‘it must be nice to know what everyone is thinking all the time,’ no? That’s what I hear all the time. But, it really isn’t special because I know what people think, but I don’t know how they feel or if it’s just me overthinking things through their thoughts.”

“Unless you say it out loud, it’s never really clear, huh,” Tsukishima said and he almost kicked himself for not realizing it earlier. “You can’t really do anything with things that aren’t spoken.”

“Exactly!” Kuroo beamed. “I’m glad you understand, it’s as if you’ve walked a mile in my shoes or something!”

Tsukishima laughed, and Kuroo seemed to delight in it, grinning all the same.

“You’re ridiculous.”

“So, am I forgiven?” Kuroo asked sheepishly, as if he had to ask such a question. It was clearly a misunderstanding on both sides in the end. Or, maybe, not so much a misunderstanding as it was a mismatch in wavelengths.

“One question,” Tsukishima stated.

“Anything.”

“Why haven’t you used my powers on me yet?”

Kuroo blinked, not understanding.

“You’ve used them on Bokuto before, and I can’t recall you using them on anyone else, but if you wanted me to shut up and listen, that would have been your best bet.”

Yamaguchi had faith that Tsukishima would never use his powers on him, but Tsukishima wasn’t as trusting. It would have been the most logical course of action for the third-year, to corner Tsukishima somewhere and make him listen whether he wanted to or not.

“It can hardly be called a conversation if you weren’t responding back to me,” Kuroo smiled. “I realized that after I screwed up last night. I mean, I screw up a lot, but that was my bad. I always get a little ahead of myself because I think I have all the answers, but sometimes the things that people think aren’t exactly what they intend.”

“I… I screwed up too, though,” Tsukishima admitted as he felt a flush of shame. “I was scared you were going to use me like people have done in the… the past, and I wanted to protect myself. I didn’t want you to hurt me because I already felt so clo—”

The blonde hunched up his shoulders. “You’re just very comfortable to be around so I thought maybe I was letting my guard down and...”

God, talking was so hard. Tsukishima cursed whoever it was in ancient times past who had started communicating with vocal chords. This was hell.

Kuroo lifted their hands together to face level. He paused for a moment before leaning down to kiss at Tsukishima’s knuckles. He lay his forehead on their joined fingers as Tsukishima spluttered in front of him.

“God, Kei, I was so worried. I thought you seriously hated me.”

“I-I know, Akaashi-san told me.”

“That Akaashi,” Kuroo said, his exasperation muffled. “Guess I owe him one.”

He looked up, hope alight in his eyes. “Can we try again, Kei?”

“Try?”

“Another date,” Kuroo grinned, peering up at him above their fingertips. “Maybe a double date this time? Akaashi can keep me in line.”

Tsukishima snorted. “Doesn’t he have his hands full with Bokuto-san?”

“He’s a busy man, that Akaashi,” Kuroo chuckled. “We can leave them to themselves after a bit.”

“You just want to get alone with me in the end.”

“Guilty as charged.”

“Okay,” Tsukishima said, bringing their hands close to his own lips to place a kiss over Kuroo’s knuckles as well. “I want to try.”

Tsukishima didn’t know it was possible for a person to go from one shade of pink to bright red in an instant, but Kuroo always seemed to defy his expectations. The raven stared down at where their hands met, as if disbelieving they were connected there.

‘ _Shit_.’

Tsukishima laughed, smirking at him. “You’re teaching me some naughty things, senpai.”

“S-senp—”

The blonde leaned forward, letting go of where they were connected to wrap his arms around Kuroos neck. The raven was shorter than him so it was easy enough to lean against him fully. Kuroo stiffened but lay his hands around Tsukishima’s hips almost as quickly. They both sighed, burying themselves against each other.

“I’m still scared.”

“What a surprise, so am I,” Kuroo mused. “But, I think I’m less scared now… _to lose you_.”

Tsukishima exhaled shakily. Kuroo hadn’t said the last part, but it was clear what the raven had meant to say. Even if the words went unspoken, Tsukishima could swear he could hear them even if he had returned these powers in that very moment.

“I promise from now on, I’ll always say what I’m thinking out loud, even if it seems silly or dumb.”

Tsukishima huffed, wondering if he really would be able to handle Kuroo not holding anything back from him. How many sappy things would he say before the blonde internally combusted?

But, this was it.

Tsukishima shook a little with anticipation—heck, just because one person said he was worth it didn’t mean that all of his insecurities dissipated. But, this, this is what he needed.

Akaashi was right, he definitely needed to give Kuroo a chance.

And maybe, even if the raven ended up hurting him, Tsukishima wouldn’t mind. Because, after all, it was Kuroo and the man was as ridiculous as his fanciful notions of romance.

He didn’t mind entertaining those notions from time to time.

As long as it was for his soulmate.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tsukishima slept well that night.

The only dream he saw was one of Yamaguchi’s—he and Yachi were in a greenhouse, tending to some of the plants there.

Yamaguchi reached into a particularly thick bush of leaves and pulled out a flower. Delicately, he tucked it behind Yachi’s ear and she beamed, a brightness that put her superpower to shame. Her glow made each and every one of his freckles dance, but the two weren’t blinded by the light.

She leaned up to place a kiss to his cheek and he reciprocated, reaching down to hold her hands in his.

Just like Kuroo had done.

The act didn’t scare Tsukishima anymore, and instead, he felt a tightness in his chest, an ache from fondness. He should’ve given in a long time ago to this. It was really nice.

He was happy his friend had embraced his soulmate so easily. They were cute together.

Tsukishima wondered if he and Kuroo were cute together as an afterthought and nearly smacked himself awake with embarrassment.

He didn’t need to because soon, the blankets were rustling around him and his teammates were already up and ready to face the new day.

The blonde pushed back his covers and set about to cleaning up as well, his mind buzzing with excitement over the date that Kuroo had promised. The raven had jumped a lot of hoops, but Bokuto and Akaashi were taking most of the day off as well to join them.

How he had managed to convince the coach from a completely different team, Tsukishima had no idea, but, he figured that the captain’s powers of persuasion were really that great.

After all, he had even persuaded Tsukishima to dive into this whole soulmate ordeal with new conviction.

When they had finished stuffing all the futons into the closet and washing up, Tsukishima found Kuroo waiting for him outside the cafeteria after a quick breakfast, the bags from last night nearly all gone. The man wore some jeans and a loose t-shirt.

“Slept well?” Kuroo called out, smiling.

“Looks like you’re the one who slept well,” Tsukishima mused, but he couldn’t find it in himself to keep from smiling as well.

“I slept wonderful, knowing I’d get to see my lovely soulmate in the morning.”

Tsukishima glared back at him, but the pink tinting his ears made his stare ineffective. “Kuroo… please.”

“Please, what, Kei? You have to be more specific,” Kuroo sing-songed, humming happily.

The blonde was glad that Bokuto and Akaashi chose that moment to show up next to them. The taller of the two was wearing a tank top and shorts while the setter was wearing a cardigan over a nice top and some slacks.

“Hey, hey, are we going?”

“Yes, Bokuto-san and I need to return by the end of the day.”

Tsukishima blinked, looking back at Kuroo. “Where are we going?”

“The park!” Bokuto jumped in, looking as if he was the one who proposed the date in the first place. “They have amazing ice cream there, you’ll love it! Keiji gets three scoops every time, and there’s all sorts of flavors that you can choose—I usually get two, but—”

“Bo, we should get going,” Kuroo cut in, rushing them off in the direction of the school entrance. “Don’t make me steal your tongue again.”

“Bro, you’re no fun,” Bokuto pouted, glaring back at Kuroo. “I can’t wait til Tsukki gets his power back, then he can shut you up all the time.”

“Excuse me, I am an absolute joy to listen to, isn’t that right, Kei?” Kuroo smiled back at Tsukishima who was trying hard not to break into laughter.

“Sure, Kuroo-san.”

“Wha— ‘-san,’ again?!”

Bokuto hooted as if to make a mockery of Kuroo and the two got wrapped up in a fight that looked less like two friends wrestling and more like two grown men flinging personal belongings at one another.

Because that’s what it was.

“The bus is here,” Akaashi called out and everyone lined up to get in, ignoring the concerned stare of the driver. Kuroo’s cheeks were bright red.

The four of them sat two and two, an aisle away from each other. Bokuto and Tsukishima took the window seats. Akaashi turned to Kuroo, his stare deadpan.

“You’re very embarrassed, Kuroo-san.”

“Oh my god, shut it, Akaashi, I _know_.”

Bokuto leaned over Akaashi, glancing at them with the same undeterred smile on his face. “What’s he embarrassed about?”

“We are _not_ starting this again, Bo. I am not embarrassed.”

“I don’t know, Kuroo, you seem pretty embarrassed to me.”

“Not you too, Kei!” Kuroo groaned, burying his face in his hands. Tsukishima snickered next to him, prying one of those hands away from his face and intertwining it with his own.

Kuroo seemed to cheer up instantly.

Yeah, Tsukishima liked that. He needed to do that more often.

Akaashi looked away. “PDA.”

Kuroo riled up again. “Just because you can see it without seeing it doesn’t mean it’s blatant PDA!”

Bokuto whistled in response and Kuroo moaned in despair once more. Tsukishima hummed, staring out his window at the passing scenery.

This was nice. Akaashi also seemed to be doing a lot better than he was yesterday, giving Tsukishima what he thought were encouraging glances.

It wasn’t long before the four of them reached the park that Bokuto was talking about. According to the excitable ace, it was a fairly quiet park, but there was always one ice cream vendor who frequented the ‘eighth tree to the left,’ whatever that meant.

Once they got off of the bus, Tsukishima saw exactly what Bokuto had meant by that. The moment he stepped foot off the platform, there was a stretch of trees as far as the eye could see to the left and the right of the station. They were at least five meters apart from one another and in the distance, Tsukishima could see a cart approximately eight trees to the left of the bus stop.

They set off towards it, skirting along the side of the large lake that was there. Although the park was in the middle of the city, it was far enough away from crowds and the main streets that Tsukishima only heard the passing thoughts of random passersby or those from his group.

It was very considerate of his upperclassmen. He really appreciated it.

Bokuto was restless, talking about the type of ice cream he wanted to get with Akaashi who only smiled and nodded along. Kuroo and Tsukishima walked behind them at a slower pace, their hands still intertwined from the bus ride.

“How’d you get their coach to agree to let them come?” Tsukishima asked, half out of curiosity, half because he needed something to distract him from how sweaty his palms were becoming.

“Well, you know how we weren’t doing so well the other day?” Kuroo asked rhetorically before continuing. “Akaashi wasn’t feeling good either and had to sit out a lot. So essentially, most of the teams except one or two practicing yesterday were doing pretty bad. I told him that going out for a bit might help us. Akaashi had to back me up on it, but it all worked out in the end.”

“Akaashi-san seems better.”

“Yeah, he’s definitely doing a lot better,” Kuroo chuckled, scratching his chin. “He’s extra mean to me when he’s doing well.”

Tsukishima snorted. “I think for all he puts up with, he deserves to be a little mean.”

“Rude, Kei, I’m always nice to him.”

“Sure.”

Kuroo pouted, asserting that he really _is_ that nice to him and Tsukishima laughed again, rolling his eyes.

Of course, he was. He was Kuroo. It was like he was obligated to be nice by default. Like second nature.

They reached the cart where Bokuto and Akaashi were already selecting their different flavored scoops. Bokuto had decided to get three scoops after all because ‘Keiji can finish it if I can’t!’ After they had picked what they wanted, they turned around, eyeing Kuroo with some kind of ravenous hunger. Tsukishima felt the captain stiffen.

“What?”

“Keiji said you’re feeling extra generous today, Kuroo,” Bokuto beamed, looking from his bro to the vendor who looked like he could not give less of a crap about anything really. Then, back at Kuroo, the smile never leaving his lips.

“Oh, no, I am _not_ paying for your ice creams, you both are going to empty out my wallet.”

“Maybe just pay for Akaashi-san’s,” Tsukishima choked back laughter, looking at the Nekoma captain who honestly looked like a deer caught in headlights.

“Wait, what about me, bro?” Bokuto seemed to droop a little, though he still looked a little indignant.

“I—” Kuroo spluttered, looking very put out. His thoughts were a collection of how much he would like to strangle Akaashi for reading him like that or how difficult it was to refuse Bokuto because it was like kicking a puppy. He grumbled, brows furrowing as he dug into his backpack. “Screw you guys, just this once okay?!”

Bokuto whooped and hollered and the vendor didn’t even bat an eye as the third-year leaned over the cart once more, nearly knocking it over to peer closely at the different flavors of ice cream inside. Kuroo grumbled something about how he needed better friends before he beckoned Tsukishima closer to look at the desserts as well.

“Anything you want, Kei?”

“I can pay for myself,” Tsukishima said, feeling a bit bad for the raven.

“Nah, my treat this time. Next time you can buy me something, yeah?”

‘Next time’ rang in his ears once more. The first time Kuroo had said it on their date a few days back, it had felt like such a foreign word, one with some unforeseen implications that Tsukishima wasn’t sure he wanted any part of. Maybe that’s why it felt more real this time, and more embarrassing.

He occupied himself with looking at the flavors. For a small vendor on the side of the road, there were quite a bit of options ranging from raspberry bliss to butter pecan and green tea. Naturally, his eyes fell on a few that met his fancy.

After paying for Bokuto’s and Akaashi’s ice creams, Kuroo paid for Tsukishima’s as well, an entire three scoops of strawberry swirl, strawberry cheesecake, and napoleon.

“Wouldn’t plain strawberry be better than napoleon?” Kuroo pointed out after noting regular strawberry was in the cart as well. He was holding his own cone of fudge, rocky road, and mint chocolate chip.

“No, they are clearly two distinct flavors.” Tsukishima stated matter-of-factly.

“Kei, it is literally strawberry with chocolate and vanilla.”

“Does regular strawberry have chocolate or vanilla?”

“No, but—”

“Case closed.”

Kuroo cackled, shrugging. “Fair, fair.” They walked over to the edge of the lake where Bokuto and Akaashi were sitting on the grass.

There, they spent a quiet early afternoon, exchanging a few pleasantries and finishing their treats. Tsukishima heard about the many antics that Bokuto and Kuroo had gotten into since their freshman year like when Bokuto would take Kuroo’s power and eavesdrop on others with it. Or how Akaashi and Kuroo would get into arguments where they fought over what would be best for their teams based on the perspectives given to them by their superpowers. Tsukishima also learned that Bokuto could only steal powers within the span of a day for those four minutes at most. They had verified it through many of Kuroo’s ‘experiments’ which was simply a nicer way to put ‘overglorified bro time.’

It was interesting getting to see what he hadn’t seen of Kuroo due to the age gap. It made the blonde feel closer than ever before to the raven.

Not only that, but he also discovered that both Bokuto and Akaashi had discovered new things about their own powers through their soulmate which wasn’t entirely uncommon. Tsukishima felt some of his insecurity at his inability to do so flare up a little, but it was quickly quashed when he felt Kuroo’s hand squeeze his.

Tsukishima looked up to see the concern in Kuroo’s eyes and his stared back down at the grass between their feet, listening to the quiet lap of water against the shore.

“I’m fine.”

Kuroo smiled, and Tsukishima wanted to kiss it off his face.

No sooner than he had thought that, Akaashi got up from his spot next to Bokuto and sent the blonde a knowing look. He pointedly sent a question to the Nekoma captain. “Have you already purchased the tickets beforehand, Kuroo-san?”

Kuroo jumped, looking up at Akaashi and getting up as well. “Nah, I don’t think they even have a website. It’s okay though, I had a friend check the times for me and it should be the same!”

“Movies!” Bokuto yelled and stood up just as quickly, taking Akaashi’s hand into his. “Do they have that new action one?”

Tsukishima slowly stood up beside them, and Kuroo gave him a side-eye before intertwining their hands together as well. Tsukishima refused to acknowledge the heat in his cheeks. It _was_ a double date after all.

“Bro, I already told you, the theater only has oldies.”

Bokuto slumped, pouting. “Do they at least have that one movie where the owl shows up?”

“Probably,” Kuroo smirked and Bokuto seemed to brighten at that. Tsukishima swore he saw Akaashi’s lips turn up a little.

The four of them left the park behind them, heading to a remote subway location on the edge of the main city. There, they swiped their student ID cards and Kuroo pointed out their destination which was the small purple dot on the outskirts of Tokyo on the map of intersecting colors. They were nearly going all the way across, from one end of the map the other. Tsukishima had fitted his headphones around his ears before they even sat down in their train car.

There was a fair amount of people in the section with them, but as they got closer and closer to the movie theater, the number of passengers started to thin. Kuroo had warned them that it was going to be a long ride there, but Tsukishima found he didn’t particularly mind. Everyone’s thoughts were a dull hum under the music and he was in good company. It was comforting to see Bokuto and Akaashi across from them, Bokuto passed out on Akaashi’s shoulder while the second-year was idly running his fingers through the older man’s hair. Kuroo was lightly humming, watching the other passengers with barely concealed interest and following the lights that flickered by as they sped along under the city.

Halfway through their trip, Kuroo had shown curiosity for the music Tsukishima was listening to and the blonde handed him his phone, watching quietly as the raven swiped through his music choices, a soft smile fitted on his lips.

 Kuroo stopped on Queen’s Bohemian Rhapsody and smirked, selecting it from the list without so much as a warning.

“Hey,” Tsukishima started, but Kuroo was already off, mouthing the lyrics to Tsukishima and making ridiculous hand motions to couple it.

Tsukishima snapped his fingers over his mouth, trying to keep from laughing. Kuroo only seemed more emboldened by this and his arm flails became even more dramatic. Tsukishima succeeded for longer than he could’ve hoped until there was a motion in front of him. Bokuto had leaned forward, immediately catching on to the game they were playing, coming in with the long drawn out ‘Mama.”

From there, the two friends were singing back and forth to each other as silently as they could, looking like a bunch of street performers. Neither of them got all the English right based on their lip formation, but, their enthusiasm made up for any language barrier. Akaashi had folded his arms together, mouth pursed tight, and he looked near constipated. Tsukishima was more than certain it was because he was also holding back laughter rather than a plain show of exasperation.

When they had finished lip-singing, they had reached their destination and made their way off the subway. Before they took one step onto the platform though, all four of them burst into hysterics, drawing gazes from the few passersby near them.

Thank god the station was close to empty.

“Kuroo, what—” Tsukishima choked, letting his headphones rest around his shoulders once more. Bokuto seemed to be suffocating from lack of oxygen. Akaashi was wheezing, face bright red, hunched over Bokuto who was bent over on the floor.

“I have great vocals, don’t I, Kei?” Kuroo gasped between the laughs, wiping a tear out of his eye.

“Amazing,” Tsukishima responded, drawing air into his lungs at last. “You should quit volleyball and go pro.”

“I think they’d fit better as a comedy duo than singers,” Akaashi input, looking out of breath.

“Aghaaashi!!”

They all laughed again, but this time, found their composure more quickly. Ignoring the pointed stares of the small groups of people nearby, the four of them made their way out of the subway and out to a quaint looking section of Tokyo, the neon lights of signs dimmer and towering towers shorter than they’ve seen.

Kuroo pointed to a road that seemed to lead towards an even more isolated area and the rest of them followed without question. They turned down a street where only a few people seemed to reside and stopped by a movie theater that looked as worn as the old movies it probably showed.

“This is it!” Kuroo announced, beaming. “It has a lot of older movies, and some newer ones depending, but, new usually means within the past five years or so.”

“It seems quiet,” Tsukishima commented, feeling another swell of appreciation for his upperclassman.

“Yeah, it’s not very popular,” Kuroo mused, scratching his chin. “But, the people are nice and you get discounts on movies if you’re willing to wait a couple years. We’ll buy tickets so we can watch after getting lunch!”

“I think I see the owl one!” Bokuto called, running forward to the booth to purchase his tickets. Kuroo followed after, wallet in hand. Tsukishima made to pursue him, but was interrupted by a very loud thought in his head.

‘ _Tsukishima is very cute today_.’

“Wh-what, Akaashi-san,” Tsukishima stammered, falling back to meet eyes with Akaashi.

“Hm?”

“You can’t just…”

Akaashi blinked, then looked at him with a small smile that didn’t mask the mischief in his eyes. “Did I say something, Tsukishima?”

Tsukishima spluttered as another thought from the second-year entered his head. ‘ _You can’t prove anything._ ’

The blonde was reminded of the first time Kuroo talked about Akaashi and his death threats—it was true, the ones that were unvoiced were the scariest. Tsukishima didn’t know what to say, merely gaping back at the second-year in embarrassment.

Thankfully, Kuroo chose that exact moment to run back. “Hey, Akaashi, stop picking on Kei!”

Tsukishima flushed, eyes downcast. Akaashi stared back at Kuroo, expression unreadable. “I didn’t do anything, Kuroo-san.”

“Liar,” Kuroo growled, instantly latching onto Tsukishima. “I heard what you said about how cute he is.”

This time, Akaashi really looked confused, as did Tsukishima. “You heard it?”

Kuroo straightened. “Yeah.”

“I…” Akaashi looked from Tsukishima back to Kuroo. “I really didn’t say anything though. Out loud, that is.”

The realization seemed to dawn on them.

“Are you getting your powers back?” Tsukishima asked, suddenly nervous. It hadn’t been a full week yet, so it was too soon. He’d never heard about soulmates that only swapped powers for six days instead of seven.

“I—I don’t…” Kuroo stammered, calling Bokuto over to join them. “Quick, Kei, what is Bo thinking?”

Tsukishima stared at Bokuto who beamed back, not really understanding the apparent gravity of the situation. ‘ _Man, that owl movie is going to be so good_.’

“I heard it!” Kuroo pointed, and Bokuto blinked back at the finger. “Did you hear it too, Kei?”

“I did,” Tsukishima admit, turning to Akaashi. “Did you hear it as well, Akaashi-san?”

The second-year shook his head, looking up at Bokuto. “Though, he’s probably thinking about the owl movie that really isn’t an owl movie.”

“Woah, guys can you all read my mind?!”

Akaashi exhaled a soft laugh and Kuroo rolled his eyes. “C’mon, bro, you know Akaashi knows what you’re thinking all the time.”

“So then, did Tsukki share his mind reading with you?!”

“Or, perhaps, it only works with Kuroo-san?” Akaashi added.

“What are you thinking, Kei?” Kuroo asked, excitement clear in his eyes.

“I…” Tsukishima backtracked his thoughts to when Akaashi had first called him cute. He thought the second-year was being ridiculous, but he had also thought about all the times that Kuroo had called him cute as well… He was simultaneously listening to Akaashi’s thoughts and thinking of Kuroo at the same time. Was that the link?

He flushed, feeling heat rush into his cheeks. How could he just tell them that though?

“I don’t know,” Tsukishima croaked instead, ignoring all their stares.

“Dang,” Kuroo swore under his breath, then smiled reassuringly. “That’s okay, we’ll figure it out! Why don’t we all get some late lunch then?”

Akaashi hummed in response and Tsukishima was more than certain it wasn’t just in response to their meal. The blonde’s cheeks were probably as red as he felt.

If Kuroo noticed, he didn’t say anything and merely wrapping his fingers around Tsukishima’s. They relaxed into each other’s touch, though Tsukishima was still embarrassed about thinking of Kuroo when it was Akaashi who had complimented him.

He was falling really fast.

The four of them went to the adjacent street to one of the street vendors that sold stir-fry noodles and takoyaki. The vendor was friendly, inviting them into his booth to sit and eat as the steam from the cooking permeated the air around them. He left them to themselves after a bit, his thoughts focused only on his daughter who would be visiting him this weekend.

Tsukishima was left to think about how he would need to visit Kuroo periodically once this week was over as well. He was still scared about the distance, but the thought of long train rides to Tokyo and running into Kuroo’s arms quashed the majority of his fears.

Oh my god, Kuroo’s sap was rubbing off on him.

Tsukishima busied himself with the food instead, ignoring the glance Akaashi sent him. The four ate their fill, talking animatedly about all sorts of things. Bokuto delved into more detail on the first week he met Akaashi and Tsukishima listened attentively. Kuroo threw in some input as he had known Bokuto during this time and swore he could provide an ‘unbiased third-party point of view.’

“Kuroo, you were just upset that I met my soulmate first before you,” Bokuto noted, sending a smirk his friend’s way.

“I was not!”

“You were, I felt it!”

“Okay, maybe a little, but I was still a good wingman, you admit it!”

At Tsukishima’s inquiring look, Akaashi laughed lightly. “He barely kept us alive. Barely.”

“Hey!”

They all laughed, finishing their meal before heading to the theater. Bokuto had purchased tickets for the supposed ‘owl movie’—though, apparently, the owl only showed up for a solid twenty seconds—and Kuroo had chosen some kind of cheesy romance story that Tsukishima hardly recognized. After a bit of an argument on who gets to pay for snacks, Akaashi purchased a large bucket of popcorn for himself and bought some sour gummy candies for Bokuto. Kuroo asserted once more that Tsukishima should treat him next time and Tsukishima graciously accepted his own large popcorn and slushie.

The four of them split into twos, Bokuto and Akaashi heading to the left of the theater while Kuroo and Tsukishima went to the right. There were hardly any people around, but even so, they planned to meet after their movies in the small lobby next to the arcade.

The movie wasn’t great, but it was interesting to see some of the older film techniques they used to direct it. Even if it was a safe choice for Kuroo to pick, Tsukishima couldn’t help but feel more focused on the third-year than on the contents of the movie.

Kuroo was quite enraptured in the story, as expected. The plot centered around a girl who was dealing with a lot of personal issues with a guy who helped her to overcome her shortcomings. In the end, they would fall in love. It was cliché and generic, and Kuroo Tetsurou was biting his lip as if to keep from crying.

Again, how did this man exist?

Tsukishima glanced at Kuroo and saw the movie reflected in his eyes. Slowly, the blonde looked down at their hands, shifting over to wrap their fingers together.

It felt so natural now. Maybe because they were soulmates.

Kuroo twitched a little at the contact, looking down with a smile at their hands, squeezing Tsukishima’s long fingers in his own. Tsukishima felt something lodge in his throat. Belatedly, he was glad that Akaashi wasn’t around.

“Kuroo,” Tsukishima whispered, even if he probably had no need to in the near-empty theater.

“Hm?”

“I think—” he took a shaky breath. Kuroo was no longer paying attention to the movie. He swallowed thickly, feeling a wetness grow behind his eyes. Kuroo’s eyes widened.

‘ _Shit, is the movie that bad—I know the plot sucks, but_ —’

Tsukishima laughed and it sounded weighted with tears. Gods, this idiot.

He was glad. He was happy that he gave Kuroo a chance, that he was given this chance through volleyball, and that Kuroo took all his insecurities and shoved them under the rug. Yeah, maybe they were still there, but they seemed to disappear bit by bit with everything the raven did. Everything the raven did for Tsukishima.

All this time, Kuroo let things go at Tsukishima’s pace because he respected the blonde. He wanted to make sure he was comfortable and everything was okay for him. He had even said he would give up on the whole soulmate thing, even if it pained him to do so.

If that wasn’t love, Tsukishima didn’t know what was.

And of course, given how Kuroo would never do anything to make him upset—at least, not purposefully—and not without showering him with enough affection and care the blonde could drown in it, Tsukishima knew, he had to be the one to make the first move.

Cause, after all, Kuroo had technically made move zero—letting Tsukishima be, but still helplessly, hopelessly showering the blonde with everything he could ever need.

“Stop thinking whatever you’re panicking about,” Tsukishima laughed again, biting his lip and cupping the raven’s face in his hands. “Didn’t you say you’d speak your thoughts?”

With that, Tsukishima leaned forward, and his lips met Kuroo’s. Kuroo’s mind went to mush, and Tsukishima heard it as it went from panic to silence in an instant. The raven turned to lean further into the kiss, tentatively reaching out to wrap his free fingers around Tsukishima’s face, fingers lingering in his hair.

Tsukishima had no idea what he was doing. He had never kissed anyone before after all—he had planned to take his superpower with him to his grave, maybe date someone when he was in his mid-to-late twenties just for the show of it.

He was glad he hadn’t dated anyone before though, because this was the only answer.

It could hardly be called smooth as their teeth clacked against each other, and they weren’t exactly sure where to put their hands or their eyes or their mouths. But, feeling the softness of Kuroo’s lips against his own, the softness that was reflected in the raven’s eyes and the softness that Tsukishima felt in his heart, it was a little too perfect.

When they pulled away, Tsukishima was mentally berating himself for holding off on this for so long. He bit his lip, noticing how wet and red Kuroo’s mouth was now.

“Kuroo,” he began, and he knew he couldn’t stop from crying now. “I think I love you.”

Kuroo was teary as well. He leaned in close, eyes never leaving the blonde’s. “I know.” He pressed again this time, the kiss chaste and sweet, tasting of popcorn and shared slushie. “Even if you hadn’t said it.”

Tsukishima couldn’t keep his lips from trembling as he lifted his fingers to wrap around Kuroo’s hair and face.

‘ _I’m sorry this took so long. I’m sorry I couldn’t be braver. I’m sorry you had to wait and hurt for so long because your soulmate couldn’t—_ ’

“I’m sorry I ever said I would let it go. I was wrong,” Kuroo whispered between them once more, and Tsukishima felt as if he had to hold on as tightly as he could lest he make another mistake and let the raven go. “I love you.”

With another kiss, deep, and strong against his lips, Tsukishima felt Kuroo tighten his grip on the blonde as well.

As if he’d never let go.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

If Akaashi noticed anything between the two of them, he was merciful enough to let it go. In fact, the second-year seemed content with the outcome of the movie, looking up from his bench at them as they approached, Bokuto loudly playing one of the arcade games on the side.

They left the movie theater and headed towards the subway once more, but this time, there was a point where they’d branch off. Bokuto and Akaashi had to head back to the camp and so, only after about five stations, Kuroo and Tsukishima exited onto the platform, waving at the Fukurodani ace and setter as they made their way to school.

The sky was starting to dim and the two naturally fell into step with each other, fingers intertwining easily. The city was bustling with the onset of the coming night, but, it was still less crowded than the inner-city.

Kuroo lead them to a small ramen shop where they ate their fill of ramen in comfortable silence.

“I think it’s easier for Akaashi to pick on me now that I can’t read what he’s thinking,” Kuroo mused, slurping up some of the broth from his bowl.

“Can you usually?”

“Well, I can catch bits and pieces of things from time to time,” Kuroo responded, lightly, setting down his ramen. “I guess it levels the playing field.”

Tsukishima snorted. “What are you even playing for.”

“Hm,” Kuroo hummed, smiling. “Honor?”

“Okay, then,” Tsukishima laughed, setting his own bowl down as well. “Where are we going, by the way? The trains are going to stop running if we don’t get back to camp with the others.”

“We’re staying and sleeping out!” Kuroo beamed, but upon seeing Tsukishima’s face redden, he shook his hands hurriedly in front of him. “No, no, not that—I just—oh my god, Kei, please I’m not that much of a—”

“Okay, I get it, please stop,” Tsukishima mumbled, making as to adjust his glasses to hide his growing blush.

“I meant hanging out at a net café,” Kuroo explained. “Kenma used to go to a lot when we were younger and they let you stay in the rooms upstairs for some of them. There’s this one that’s pretty quiet compared to others and it’s very—”

Tsukishima placed a small kiss to the side of Kuroo’s mouth. He didn’t need an explanation. He trusted the raven. “Let’s go.”

Kuroo seemed to combust and he buried his face in his hands, groaning. “Kei, that’s not fair—do you _want_ me to do something?”

“Something? You have to be more specific, Kuroo-san.”

Kuroo glared at him. “You know.”

Tsukishima smirked, getting up from their table. “I won’t know unless you say so.”

Kuroo got up as well and followed him. He laughed lightly, paying the bill and stepping out with Tsukishima into the bustling city. “Don’t worry, I won’t do anything.”

“But, yeah,” Kuroo reciprocated the kiss, to the opposite side of Tsukishima’s lips. He watched the blonde’s face light up bright pink. “You’re right.”

Tsukishima found himself admitting that he might follow Kuroo to the ends of the earth, if the raven only asked. And, honestly, it should have scared him, especially with all the fears and insecurities that were dredged up to their full height over the past few days.

But, it didn’t and maybe that alone should’ve stopped him from taking Kuroo’s hand once more.

It didn’t.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We are nearing the end! Last chapter next! I know I said I'd update today and then the week after, but I'll have to see how my final project goes for uni. Nevertheless, you'll get the finale sometime in November, so stay tuned! ^^
> 
> I plan to write a shorter story for BokuAka along with a sequel for KuroTsuki so if you're interested in that, you can subscribe to the series!! :D As always thank you for all your lovely feedback, I love each and every one to bits and pieces--it really keep me going <3
> 
> As usual, I'm here  
> [Twitter](https://twitter.com/tetsookie)  
> [Tumblr](http://greendoodle.tumblr.com/)


	7. day 7, then 8, then 9, and forever

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Did you really mean that, Kei?” Kuroo whispered once things had settled down.
> 
> “Hm?”
> 
> “About forever. I mean, maybe not that kind of indefinite kind of thing, but, what… what’re your plans? Are you going to college? Still going to play volleyball? _Still going to stay with me?”_
> 
> “I don’t know,” Tsukishima admitted, looking at the window, glowing from the lamplight. It was too soon to think about the future. “I mean, I’m going to go to college, but, I’m not sure about… other things.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy birthday Kuroo!! :D  
> As a tribute to his birthday, here's the final chapter of Things Unspoken! Thank you guys so much for embarking on this journey with me, I'm so grateful for all your support and love! It's been a journey and I am quite emotional xD
> 
> I've already started the BokuAka sidestory installment of this series--it'll be a shorter multichap (4 chapters!) so if you want to check it out, it's [here](https://archiveofourown.org/works/16594181)! There will also be an Explicit oneshot for KuroTsuki sometime in the near future, so subscribe to the series and keep your eyes out for that if you're interested! ^^
> 
> With all that said, I hope you enjoy the final chapter! <3

Tsukishima knew it was silly in retrospect.

He absolutely liked Kuroo—as a person, as a captain, as his soulmate. And, now that he had jumped over the hurdle of his own self-doubt, he could admit it clearly.

Yeah, he loved him.

It was too soon maybe. They’d known each other a grand total of six days. You aren’t really supposed to fall in love with someone that quickly.

He supposed the soulmate thing made it easier.

Or, perhaps, it just sped up the process somehow. He didn’t really know the science behind it, if there even was any.

“What’re you thinking about, Kei?”

Tsukishima looked out across the dimly lit room to find a face looking back at him, eyes soft, lips slightly upturned, hand inching towards him. The blonde sighed in content, reaching out to grab Kuroo’s fingers in his.

The two had arrived at the net café, and contrary to what Tsukishima believed to be true about them, this one was kept sparkling clean, each computer separated from one another in small booths, a dim blue light shining throughout the first floor. They were on the second floor now where patrons were allowed to rent out futons to lay across a tatami mat and sleep in small rooms separated only by thin paper doors. Through the window, the warm light of streetlamps outside filtered into the room, barely illuminating the dark inside.

Despite the lack of light in the room, Tsukishima found Kuroo easily. He stared back at him, squeezing their hands together. It had never been difficult to find him at all, to be honest. The only obstacle that had been in his way had been himself.

Kuroo’s amber eyes patiently stared back at him, waiting for a reply. Tsukishima smiled, and he hoped the raven wouldn’t be able to see how delighted he looked.

“How… I’ll get to see the transformation of your hair as it takes its usual shape.”

They were alone in their room, but, if Kuroo voiced his complaints in his normal voice, it would have carried over to others. Instead, he pouted, pulling Tsukishima closer to speak only above a whisper. “Kei, that’s not very nice of you. I’m sensitive about my hair.”

Tsukishima snorted, knowing he could never be too close to Kuroo, and yet, feeling way too self-conscious like this, near enough to each other to feel the rise and fall of their chests.

“Sorry,” he breathed, eyes flitting down to Kuroo’s lips before up again. “Can I make it up to you?”

Kuroo’s breath hitched, and god, did Tsukishima revel the sound in that quiet room with no other guests to bother them. He knew there were customers downstairs gaming and a few more who had rented out small rooms similar to theirs, but, right now, his world was only he and Kuroo.

“Uh,” Kuroo said, seemingly finding his voice again. He swallowed thickly and Tsukishima knew that Kuroo knew the blonde heard it. ‘ _Fuck_.’

Ignoring the heat in his own cheeks, Tsukishima leaned closer and their lips met quietly in the dark. It was different from the movie theater where they were crying and desperate to just be as close as possible to each other. This time, it was a soft kind of firmness, familiar and constant—a promise of many more kisses to come.

When Tsukishima pulled back, Kuroo did as well, eyes fluttering open as if in a daze.

“Wow, I love you.”

Tsukishima knew it wasn’t just the cramped space of the room that was making him warmer than usual. He bit his lip and looked away, uncertain what to do with the tightness in his chest. It was too much. He didn’t want to cry again.

“I love you too.”

Kuroo smiled wide, looking beside himself with happiness. He leaned forward to bridge the distance, and peppered Tsukishima’s cheeks with more kisses.

“God, how are you so perfect—I don’t even care that I had to wait longer than Bo, this, _you_ , you’re the best.”

Tsukishima giggled, shuffling away from the onslaught of affection. Before he could crawl too far, Kuroo leaned over to grab him by the waist, pulling him back.

“Oh my god, Kuroo, stop—”

“Nope, never stopping, we need to make up all the kisses I wanted to give you for the past seven days—”

“You’re being ridiculous—”

Kuroo wrapped his arms around Tsukishima’s frame, and they rolled around on the futons together, legs tangling, sheets bundling up around them. Their limbs collided with the doors, rattling the frames.

“Okay, stop, really, we’re being too loud—” Tsukishima laughed, prying Kuroo’s fingers away from around his stomach. “You can give me all those kisses whenever you want from now on, you know—”

As soon as he had started, Kuroo stopped like a deer in the headlights, blinking back at Tsukishima blankly. His arms were still wrapped around the blonde and Tsukishima lay over the raven, bodies touching, close, close, too close.

“C-cause, you know, we have forever and all…”

Kuroo’s bottom lip came up to swallow his upper one in a pout and Tsukishima startled, hands flying over his mouth.

“That’s not what I—I mean, yeah, of course we do, but like, I didn’t mean it like—”

“Kei, I love you so much, you know that?” Kuroo sobbed, and he truly looked like the happiest man in the world. He twirled them around to lay on top of their futons once more, grabbing Tsukishima in a tight embrace.

“Have mercy on me,” Tsukishima mumbled into the crook of Kuroo’s shoulder, though, he also held back as firmly to the raven, burying his face into the fabric of his shirt.

“ _You’re_ saying that? You’re the one who needs to have mercy on me!”

The wall rattled to the left of them, and they both silenced, pulling apart slowly. Kuroo gave a sheepish look to the direction of their neighbors.

“Oops.”

Tsukishima bit back a laugh and they both snickered quietly to themselves, hands coming to intertwine once more. They grabbed the blankets and pillows strewn across the room together and crawled back to lay down on the mat again.

In no time, peace was restored. Well, mostly.

“Did you really mean that, Kei?” Kuroo whispered once things had settled down.

“Hm?”

“About forever. I mean, maybe not that kind of indefinite kind of thing, but, what… what’re your plans? Are you going to college? Still going to play volleyball? _Still going to stay with me?_ ”

“I don’t know,” Tsukishima admitted, looking at the window, glowing from the lamplight. It was too soon to think about the future. “I mean, I’m going to go to college, but, I’m not sure about… other things.”

“I see,” Kuroo moved around restlessly in his bed. “But, that’s okay. You’re a first-year. You have time.”

“Yeah,” Tsukishima said.

Their conversation petered off, and Tsukishima felt his eyelids grow heavy. Despite wanting to stay up longer and talk more with Kuroo, it had been a long day of firsts. He had gone on a date for the first time, discovered something new about Kuroo’s powers, and kissed someone for the first time.

He had accepted his soulmate for the first time too.

Tsukishima felt Kuroo turn to him and despite some uncertainty in the raven’s eyes, he smiled, brushing a hand through the blonde’s hair. “Goodnight, Kei. Sweet dreams.”

His world melted away and the only thing that was left was the feeling of kind fingers resting on top of his head.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The next morning, they headed back to school, taking one of the earliest trains back to campus.  It was a lazy morning with quick pecks to the side of mouths as they brushed their teeth, leisurely packing, and grabbing a fast breakfast at an udon stand near the café. It was slow, and sleepy, but so perfect, and Tsukishima found himself lost in the casual conversation they made throughout the day.

Even as they exited the subway together, hand-in-hand, Tsukishima realized he didn’t want it to end. Kuroo was thinking something, that much was obvious from the gentle hum in the raven’s head, but it didn’t seem particularly pressing. Whatever it was, it didn’t stop him from squeezing his hand as they reached the gymnasium.

“Well, gotta go be a captain and all, so,” Kuroo was rambling, though his eyes never left Tsukishima’s lips. “I guess this is where we part, but I’ll see you off when your team leaves for Miyagi.”

As if he could be more obvious.

Tsukishima rolled his eyes, leaning forward to place a soft kiss to Kuroo’s lips. Even though he had only learned how to kiss the other day, he wasn’t going to let Kuroo be the only one who initiated it all the time.

When he pulled back to see the raven’s flushed cheeks and infatuated expression, he knew he definitely wanted to do that more often.

“See you,” Tsukishima murmured, a volume lower than he had been expecting. He smiled, squeezing the fingers in his palm tightly before letting go. The first-year headed off to his team’s sleeping rooms to drop off his things as Kuroo waved him goodbye.

It was only a little after noon so Tsukishima figured all the teams would still be practicing in the gym, getting final workouts done before everyone returned to their own schools. After practice, they would eat a late lunch, have a cooldown period of free time before getting on the bus to leave prior to sunset. He’d have to say goodbye to Kuroo then.

Tsukishima admitted it was happening a little too fast for his liking. After all, he had only _just_ accepted his soulmate and now he had to go back to Miyagi that night. He was sure other soulmates were able to fully enjoy the time they spent in the first week of meeting unlike them. He mentally berated himself for taking so long to come to terms with Kuroo’s very existence.

Quickly, Tsukishima put his things away, changed into gym clothes, and washed up before heading to the main gymnasium. As he expected, everyone was just about getting ready to wrap up practice, some of the longer matches still playing in the background while a few teams cleaned up.

“Tsukishima!”

A familiar annoying yell resounded across the room. Tsukishima winced, turning to find Hinata jogging up to him.

“We’re doing penalties right now on the hill!”

Oh. Great. Of course, he had to return for this.

Tsukishima glanced over at Nekoma for a moment. The team was in a game right now, and Kuroo had been swapped in as a pinch server. The first-year watched as the captain dove for a ball, his form perfect as always, without even trying. Everything he did was so perfect and all Tsukishima wanted to do was just watch the raven play on the sidelines, witness every score he made and every smile he gave.

Wordlessly ignoring his thoughts, Tsukishima followed the redhead as he ran outside to join Karasuno. He was greeted to Sugawara assessing him with a knowing look in his eyes.

Was it a setter thing?

As Hinata bowled into Kageyama and the two started yelling at each other, Tsukishima figured that no, it was not a setter thing. He couldn’t imagine Kageyama making the same kind of unsettling observations as Kenma or the rest. But it was definitely an Akaashi and Sugawara thing, for sure.

“How was your date, Tsukishima?” Sugawara called out as he approached them at the base of the hill. “Did you have fun?”

Tsukishima paused, taking a moment to stretch on the grass. He averted his eyes from the vice-captain, trying desperately not to recall that dream from days ago. “It wasn’t bad.”

Sugawara grinned, and he leaned over to pat the blonde on the back. “Good, good, glad to hear it! Having one of our tallest players back is great, though you’re a little late to the party. Still, glad you’re here to suffer through the penalties with us!”

As the third-year turned to join the rest of their team, Tsukishima watched him cautiously. He had a vague handle on Sugawara’s superpower from what he knew about the gray-haired senior and if it was the form of omniscience he thought it was, Tsukishima had no doubt Sugawara knew how his date had went.

He tried not to think about it.

By the time Karasuno had ran up and down the hill two times, Tsukishima had warmed up and was joining them in the drills. It was difficult and exhausting, but it got his mind off of leaving Kuroo and finally ending this week-long journey.

It was only belatedly that he realized he would be getting his powers back too, and the constant hum he heard every moment of the day would disappear completely.

That was an odd feeling he wanted to get off his mind as well.

They finished their punishment and joined the rest of the teams to clean up the gym before lunch. According to the excited squawks of some of their more dimwitted members, Tsukishima had learned they were having a barbeque after some downtime. He took the free time as an invitation to find Kuroo, but unfortunately, the captain seemed to be busy, rallying the Tokyo teams for meetings, and talking with the coaches. Tsukishima decided to just help out with some of the barbeque preparations with the managers and a few straggling volleyball players. He would have spent some time with Yamaguchi, but he and Yachi were off doing inventory together, and Tsukishima did not want to be third wheeling.

He had his own soulmate to return to, after all.

Burying that embarrassing thought down and trying to hide the flush in his cheeks, Tsukishima stayed mostly to himself until the barbeque started. Once people started scrambling for food, he took a small plate for himself and migrated to a less populated area of the school, watching the antics of every team from a distance.

He kept an eye out for Kuroo as well, but the captain seemed to be running around with Bokuto in some kind of meat scavenging competition. A few times throughout it, the raven had looked up, locked eyes with Tsukishima and smiled, as if content that the blonde was eating, but outside of the general vicinity of everyone else, in mostly peaceful silence.

The consideration made Tsukishima’s chest tighten.

“Tsukishima.”

The first-year looked up from his meal to see Akaashi walk towards him. The second-year studied him for a moment before sitting down next to him on the steps.

“You’re eating enough?”

“Ah, um,” Tsukishima stammered, putting his chopsticks down. “Yes.”

Akaashi offered him a quiet laugh. “Don’t be so nervous, I’m not here about how you’re feeling. I’m actually happy for you.”

Tsukishima looked down at his hands, feeling his cheeks burn. “Thank you.”

The second-year hummed, taking another bite from the riceball on his plate. “ _So cute._ You can transfer another person’s thoughts to someone else, correct?”

The blonde startled, watching as Akaashi’s emerald eyes turned to him. He bit his lip, laughing nervously. “I’m not too sure, yet, but that does seem to be the case…”

“It seems it only works for people you’re thinking of.”

“I—”

“He heard mine. Look,” Akaashi pressed and Tsukishima turned his gaze to where Akaashi was indicating.

For a moment, all he saw was Kuroo looking very lost next to a mischievous Bokuto who successfully managed to swipe something off of the distracted raven’s plate. The third-year was looking up and out above the crowd towards Tsukishima, as if the blonde had called him to get his attention.

Except, he hadn’t.

Kuroo noticed Akaashi next to Tsukishima and his eyes widened in recognition. He made as if to trudge his way over to them when another thought from the second-year entered Tsukishima’s mind.

‘ _It’s alright, I’m not doing anything_.’

Kuroo paused, the expression on his face was one of complete confusion. Still, he stopped and turned to resume his fight with Bokuto, sending Tsukishima a reassuring glance beforehand, one that he read as ‘If you need anything, just call.’

“How did—”

“You’ve been thinking about Kuroo-san all day, haven’t you? I’ve noticed he’s been very distracted—he’s getting a lot of secondhand thoughts through you.”

Shit.

Tsukishima covered his mouth with his hand, putting down his plate on the floor. He hadn’t really been paying attention to the thoughts that had crawled into his head today, mostly because he had learned how to drown it out as white noise.

Plus, he was with Kuroo and the raven was all he wanted to pay attention to.

That explained Kuroo’s distracted nature for the majority of the day. It must have been a bit unnerving to suddenly hear other people’s thoughts again, unfiltered and rampant. Though, if Kuroo was more experienced with treating it as background noises, Tsukishima wondered if that was enough to sidetrack the third-year at all.

Maybe it was something else too, but, the extra thoughts probably weren’t helping.

“He’s been nervous,” Akaashi commented, and Tsukishima felt his fingers twitch with anxious energy.

“I know, but I don’t…” Tsukishima began, feeling lost and uncertain again. “He said he would tell me his feelings from now on, so—”

“Have you?”

“Huh?”

“Have you told him _your_ feelings as well?”

Tsukishima blinked, recalling the moment they had in the movie theater and in the net café. “Yes, yes, I have.”

“So, you’ve said clearly that you’re fine with being soulmates?”

He hadn’t, but he figured it would be obvious. Tsukishima watched as Akaashi studied him for a moment before sighing lightly.

“Kuroo’s a third-year. You are two years apart. If you don’t say things explicitly, I only imagine it would be difficult to continue your relationship.”

_“But, that’s okay. You’re a first-year. You have time.”_

Tsukishima felt his stomach drop. Did Kuroo think he had no time as a third-year when he said that? Tsukishima admitted, it was difficult thinking about the future, as he wasn’t sure what he wanted to do as a career, or with volleyball, or anything else, but for Kuroo’s sake…

With the way things were going, it wasn’t fair to Kuroo at all.

_“Still going to stay with me?_ ”

He turned to find Kuroo in the crowd of hungry volleyball players. Everyone was wrapping up, eating the last bits and pieces of their meals, and the managers were rallying their teams to pack everything. Some players were still running around and goofing off, but most were sitting down, conversing with one another.

Tsukishima found Kuroo with Bokuto, Lev, and Hinata on one of the last steaming grills. The four of them were eating leisurely, and Hinata seemed to be talking animatedly about something that Bokuto was all too excited to entertain. Kuroo laughed along with them, but he kept casting glances over at them, as if timing his approach as best as he could for when he could leave and be reunited with Tsukishima.

And, just as in the theater, Tsukishima knew he had to be the one to take the initiative.

As the coaches called everyone to get ready to leave, Tsukishima gestured to Kuroo to meet him. Akaashi quickly left to join Bokuto and most people dispersed to meet with their teammates as they prepared to bus back. Each team headed back to grab their things.

Tsukishima hoped Yamaguchi would take care of his stuff for him.

“Kei, what’s up?” Kuroo asked, coming over to greet him. He smirked, a shit-eating grin on his face. “Did you miss me?”

“Yeah, I did.”

Kuroo halted, face going bright red in an instant. “Oh, uh. _Shit._ ”

Tsukishima smiled, grabbing Kuroo’s hand and pulling him forwards. “Can we talk about something?” He glanced around nervously. “Alone?”

Nodding blankly, Kuroo gently squeezed back and Tsukishima took that as a sign to lead the raven around to the back of the third gymnasium, quite a distance away from the cafeteria or sleeping rooms. Once there, Tsukishima released his grip on Kuroo’s hands.

“Oh, what’s this, Kei? Getting feisty?” Kuroo laughed nervously, running a hand through his hair. Tsukishima looked up at it, a fondness settling into his heart. Had he always done that when he was nervous? He definitely tended to put up a front of someone who knew what he was doing all the time, even if he was just as anxious as anyone else.

“Stop that,” Tsukishima said, reaching forward to grab at Kuroo’s wrist. He placed his free hand on the side of the man’s cheek, noting how warm it felt. “You’re embarrassing yourself.”

With that, Tsukishima pressed his lips against Kuroo’s. The pressure the raven put was slack at first, but soon, he was pushing back as well, both of them getting lost in themselves.

It felt as if they hadn’t kissed in ages. It was ridiculous.

When Kuroo pulled back, eyes hazy, mouth parted, Tsukishima felt tempted to kiss him again. With the way Kuroo was looking back at him, as if he were some kind of precious jewel, Tsukishima assumed he was also thinking the same thing.

“Kei, I’m going to miss you,” Kuroo murmured, as their foreheads touched. “Let’s call often, okay?”

“You’ve got to give me your number first,” Tsukishima nearly whispered back, watching the setting sun reflecting in the raven’s eyes. He exhaled shakily, looking down at their feet. “I… want to spend more time with my soulmate.”

Kuroo’s eyes widened. “You said I’m your soulmate.”

“Yeah,” Tsukishima laughed, feeling a little embarrassed that it had taken him this long to do so. “To be honest, I don’t know what the future will hold. I don’t know about school or volleyball, or any of that, but I know that I want you there with me.”

Kuroo bit his bottom lip and his eyes seemed to glisten with the onset of tears.

“And, maybe, if I get to see you more because of volleyball, I’m okay with playing more too. I might even come to love it, who knows. We’ll play and win and find each other on the court during nationals. Maybe it’s a farfetched dream because we’re only a small team from Miyagi, but I think if it’s to reach you—”

Tsukishima swallowed, eyes darting from one part of the concrete beneath their feet to another. This was silly and absolutely ridiculous. After what had happened with his brother, he had promised he wouldn’t get so invested in anything. Yet, here he was, investing his life in his soulmate, investing it in a volleyball career he wasn’t even sure would happen, and investing it on a future he couldn’t even see ahead of him.

“Th-then, next year, I’ll visit you at your university and maybe I’ll even end up going there with you one day. And after, we can get an apartment together, just the two of us,” Tsukishima knew he was rambling now, but he couldn’t help it. He wanted—no, he _needed_ Kuroo to know that even if it was hard to know where they’d be, ten years or even a single year from now, he wanted him there as a constant. For as long as it was realistically possible and perhaps, even beyond that. “And if you ever don’t want me there, just let me know cause—”

Kuroo shook his head, cupping Tsukishima’s face in his hands. “Never. I’ll never want that. I will always want you, Kei. From now, from before I even met you, and until forever.”

Tsukishima tried to breathe, but it came out as a choked sob. “Forever is a long time.”

“I know,” Kuroo smiled, and he leaned forward to press a soft kiss to Tsukishima’s mouth. “But with you, it would be too short.”

The blonde embraced him, and Kuroo returned the gesture with twice the fervor, and if it had been anything other than a romantic embrace, it might have been suffocating. But this hold was just right, with the right amount of longing and care, and Tsukishima was positive he would have been content staying like this forever. It felt like home.

They pulled apart and Tsukishima laughed lightly at the tears at the corners of Kuroo’s eyes. He reached out to wipe them away. “Are you scared of the future, Tetsurou?”

Kuroo blinked, his mind a scratch record once more as it replayed his first name over and over. He moaned, burying himself into Tsukishima’s shoulder. “Maybe I should be with a soulmate like you…”

Tsukishima giggled, humming into the crook of Kuroo’s neck. He felt the raven shiver at the touch. “I love you.”

“Mm,” Kuroo grinned wide, peppering Tsukishima’s nape with kisses, making the blonde squirm. “I love you too.”

Tsukishima laughed breathlessly as Kuroo moved from his neck to his lips once more, and they stayed there together as the sun set slowly behind them.

“Kei,” Kuroo breathed, a hint of anxiousness in his voice.

“Mm?”

“Can I try something? Let me know if you don’t like it.”

Tsukishima blinked, about to ask what before he was gently pushed against the wall of the gymnasium, Kuroo’s leg slotting between his easily. His breath hitched as he felt the raven lean into him, breath ghosting over his skin.

“Tets—”

A breathy exhale was all he got in response and Tsukishima felt heat pool in his stomach. They had just been making out for at least five minutes, but in all the times they’d kissed, Tsukishima had never heard Kuroo breathe like _that_.

“Kei,” Kuroo whispered, his hips lining up with Tsukishima’s. “Kei, you’re really here, I can’t believe I got to meet you, finally. My _Kei_.”

Tsukishima squeezed his eyes shut as he tried to level his breathing, but, to no avail. He felt his own hips matching the slow grinding motion of Kuroo’s before he could even stop it from happening.

They were supposed to be getting back. They needed to return.

Yet, this, this was his entire world right now.

“Kuroo!”

They froze, hands stiffening around one another in shock as they heard a loud, booming voice call out from around the corner. It was Bokuto, but he didn’t seem to know where they were. He called out Kuroo’s name a few more times before Tsukishima tried to pry himself away from the third-year.

As if anticipating it, Kuroo tightened his grip around Tsukishima and ground their hips together roughly. Tsukishima bit back a choked gasp. Bokuto called out Tsukishima’s name this time.

Then, all at once, the blonde felt his voice die in his throat. He knew he was breathing heavily, but he didn’t hear a thing, only the beating of his own heart in his head and Kuroo’s labored breaths.

“I’m not letting him hear you.”

It was only with an afterthought did Tsukishima realize Kuroo had silenced him.

The thought alone was enough to churn his insides, making him feel hotter and heavier than he had ever felt. Kuroo had finally used his own powers on him, in a possessive way that made Tsukishima’s head spin. He grasped the raven’s black hair and buried his head into the crook of the man’s shoulders, shuddering slightly.

When Bokuto’s voice faded away into the distance, Kuroo peeked up at the blonde, grinning in embarrassment. “Probably shouldn’t have done that. W-was that okay?”

Tsukishima swallowed dryly, nodding. He wasn’t sure if Kuroo was referring to the grinding or silencing, but either way, it didn’t matter.

Heck, it was more than okay in both cases.

“I wanted to hold you for a little. I know it’s only been a week, and I didn’t want to do anything too… but, I’ve just had so many fantasies, and god, you’ve surpassed them all with just that already—”

Tsukishima shook his head, cupping the raven’s face in his hands. He ignored the heat in his face that had come from the thought of Kuroo fantasizing about him. “You’re okay, shut up.”

Kuroo smirked. “Gladly.”

They came together once more, a messy collision of tongues, arms wrapped around each other grabbing, pulling, tugging, a desperate need for more, more, more.

Too soon, they heard more frantic calls for their names and they pulled apart, a little disheveled and unkempt, but an afterglow of contentment around them. Without a word, Tsukishima took out his phone and handed it to Kuroo who took it, typed in his number, and handed it back quietly.

“Text me?”

Tsukishima nodded, pocketing his phone and taking Kuroo’s outstretched hand. They walked hand in hand back to the front of the school where the buses would be gathered.

“You can send other people your stream of consciousness thoughts.”

“Hm?”

“Your powers,” Tsukishima elaborated, feeling a little self-conscious over revealing it. “If—if you think about someone while you’re hearing that white noise in the background, like, really concentrating on that person, you can share what you’re hearing with them. It has similar conditions to your powers in general—it only works for people you are in the same room with.”

Kuroo paused. “Wait, that’d mean…” He turned to Tsukishima, looking way too much like the happiest man in the world. “You, you’ve been thinking of me all day.”

Tsukishima flushed, spluttering. “Of course, I would, y-you’re—I love you, so.”

“I love you too, Kei,” Kuroo said, voice shaking with joy. “I can’t believe, I—”

Tsukishima turned away, face even hotter than it had been while they were grinding against each other. “W-why can’t you believe it, I’m your s-soulmate, you’re such a dork.”

“I am, but I’m yours!” Kuroo sang cheerily, kissing Tsukishima’s cheek with barely contained enthusiasm. Tsukishima smiled down at the ground, distrusting his voice to say anything back without getting too emotional.

Once they got closer to the school entrance, Tsukishima slipped his hands away from Kuroo’s, suddenly feeling very embarrassed.

“Tsukishima, are you alright?” Daichi ran up to him once they spotted each other, concern clearly etched on his face. Tsukishima blinked back at him, perplexed.

“Yes?”

“Oh, good,” Daichi breathed out in relief. “Yamaguchi said you were having some stomach problems. Did…” He eyed Kuroo out of the corner of his eye. “Did he help you?”

Tsukishima flushed, realizing his friend had gone out of his way to cover him. “K-Kuroo-san brought me some painkillers. I’ll be fine for the bus ride.”

“That’s good,” Daichi smiled and Tsukishima silently thanked the stars it wasn’t Sugawara who had greeted them. His captain turned to address the rest of their team. “We’ll be leaving in two minutes, get on the bus!”

In looking around, most of the Tokyo teams had already left and the only people left were from Karasuno, Nekoma, and Fukurodani. Tsukishima felt something brush his pinky and he looked down to see Kuroo’s hand lingering hear his.

“I hope you have a safe trip back.”

“Yeah,” Tsukishima said, feeling as if he were floating on air. This felt so unreal, after seven days of being with Kuroo, to suddenly not see him or be near him now. He didn’t want it to end.

Karasuno started piling into the bus with some of the more excitable members rushing on first, and banging their heads on the rails above. Tsukishima lingered a moment longer, biting the inside of his mouth and staying close to Kuroo for as long as possible.

In the end, his time came as he was only one of three people still not on the bus. Asahi had run off with Nishinoya for a bathroom break, but he was bound to return soon. Tsukishima had to board the vehicle as well, yet still, he remained stuck there by Kuroo’s side, like some annoying gum on the underside of a desk. It was a pull he felt that he couldn’t describe.

This soulmate ordeal really _was_ out to kill him.

“ _God, this is so fucking hard_. _Why does he live so far away?_ ”

Tsukishima blinked, turning to see Kuroo with his hands clenched, his jaw set, and his eyes fixated forward, glaring at the bus as if doing so would halt its progression. The blonde’s eyes softened at the sight, and he exhaled softly, effectively grabbing the raven’s attention. To know that the third-year felt the same way was enough to keep from falling apart.

“Thank you, Tetsurou.”

“For what?” Kuroo stared, a sheepish smile on his lips.

“For being my soulmate.”

Kuroo’s cheeks perfectly matched the red glow of the setting sun. He laughed lightly, looking beside himself with glee. “No, thank _you_ for giving us a chance. Thank you for _you_ , Kei.”

“Quickly, quickly!” Nishinoya’s voice sounded out at a distance and they heard the pitter-patter of heavy footsteps run towards them.

Tsukishima sighed, reaching over briefly to squeeze Kuroo’s fingers in his and then letting go just as swiftly.

“Let’s hang out soon.”

“When?” Tsukishima asked, fearing he might sound impatient, but feeling as if he wasn’t able to spend even a single day without seeing Kuroo’s face. Kuroo smiled that small grin of his that Tsukishima adored.

“Next weekend? I’ll call you.”

“Every day.”

Kuroo blinked, then his lips quirked up in an unmistakable giddiness. “Yeah, I’ll call you every day.”

Aware that others were probably looking at them, Tsukishima raised a hand to the side of his mouth as if he were about to tell the raven a secret. Kuroo leaned forward and with his face hidden behind the blonde’s hand, Tsukishima gave him one last kiss.

It was short and fleeting, but it held fast to their hearts. Tsukishima knew it would hold him over until the next time they met, without the rest of their teammates.

He couldn’t wait.

By the look on Kuroo’s face, Tsukishima knew he couldn’t wait either.

As Asahi and Nishinoya boarded the bus, Tsukishima followed after them, eyes never leaving Kuroo’s. The raven seemed to be glowing in the light of the setting sun, his eyes shining with hope, his lips upturned, and cheeks flushed as he waved the blonde goodbye.

Tsukishima sat in his seat next to Yamaguchi, ignoring the pointed look he got from his freckled friend. The hum of thoughts from the rest of Karasuno were already flooding into his brain, but he knew that by the time he had reached Miyagi, he would be reunited with his own superpowers.

As if this entire week had never happened.

But, it did, and Tsukishima knew he could never erase the memories he made with the raven. He would never be able to forget the softness of Kuroo’s eyes, and his smile, and his hands as gentle fingers brushed his. The way that the raven had accepted all of his insecurities and even divulged a couple of his own, the way they had shakily held hands, ready to face the unknown together. Even without the physical proof of their time as soulmates, Tsukishima knew in his heart that this wouldn’t be the end.

And honestly, he couldn’t wait for a future where he’d get to see Kuroo every day for the rest of his life. Watching Kuroo wave from outside the bus as the rest of Nekoma started to pull him away, Tsukishima was more than certain that that day had only just begun.

 

 

 

 

There’s a curious thing that happens when two people meet.

Tsukishima understands it well.

One soul meets another…

 

 

…and they fall in love.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! ^^  
> I never know what to say after finishing a multichap so I'll just link this [song](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X_exxTWKWxg) that I meant to link on their very first date up to the mountains, but I kept forgetting until now, lol. Thank you all again for joining me through this AU! :D

**Author's Note:**

> "The universe was an asshole for pushing them together like this—why didn’t he have a say in when and who he would try for love?" (It's me. I'm the universe. XDD)
> 
> Find me on!!  
> [Twitter](https://twitter.com/tetsookie)  
> [Tumblr](http://greendoodle.tumblr.com/)


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